Two Volunteers Reflect: 2008-08-06 07:14:06.000 - Doug Mathews & Bob Foudriat,  Summit Volunteers Last Thursday's (only) sunrise... Notes from our two volunteers this week:A week as a volunteer is drawing to a close and with the final curtain comes a mixture of elation and trepidation and overcast skies (as usual). The latter being something I've gotten used to.Elation; I miss my family and personal routines that I've grown accustomed to over my many years being aboard this planet. I have many issues to tend to as well as a sixteen year old boy who needs guidance (and does he need

Comment the Last 2008-08-05 10:27:41.000 - Ted Letcher,  Summit Intern Flowers amonst the mist in the alpine garden Cabin fever as defined by Merriam-Webster is “extreme irritability and restlessness from living in isolation or a confined indoor area for a prolonged time.” As the end of the week draws near, the whole staff is starting to feel the effects of cabin fever. This is because the fog and more or less constant threat of thunderstorms has kept everyone confined to the observatory. Today I fought back! Knowing that the threat of thunderstorms was dismissible, I decided to brave the soupy

Fog...break...fog...fog...break...downpour...fog...break. 2008-08-04 16:44:07.000 - Jim Salge,  Temporary Observer Incessent wall of cloud... Well, it may sound strange, but I couldn’t have been happier to see the thick, soupy wet fog completely enshrouding the peak this morning. It meant that finally, after an almost unparallel bout of indecisiveness, the mountain had made up its mind. Since Thursday, clouds have ebbed and flowed over the peak in a cycle that was at most measurable in minutes. Often a bank of clouds would completely surround the summit leaving the tower in clear air, followed by a downpour seconds later, and then fog for

A STP story 2008-08-03 06:32:51.000 - Ryan Knapp,  Staff Meteorologist Seek the Peakers at dinner In college, I had a class that had us constantly doing an exercise called a 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 (or a fiver) paper. It was a quick exercise that was used to express ourselves, get us thinking creatively and take observation at the wider world around us. So why is it called a fiver paper? Well, it was a paper that required five steps to complete. The steps were to choose one (1) subject to write about, usually ourselves. The subject should, at the

Fogginess 2008-08-02 15:00:46.000 - Natalie Martin,  Summit Intern Marty! Last shift we had some great weather: stunning sunrises and sunsets, a rainbow , sunlit views , mountain shadow , and blue clouds . This shift has been quite the opposite. We have been in and out of the fog (mostly in) for the past few days and don’t see any relief coming soon. The rotunda and gift shop have been relatively empty as of late, but our weather room has seen some tours, some Lakes croo, and Steve from the other shift and his son come through. To make the

Last Week 2008-08-01 12:41:50.000 - Ted Letcher,  Summit Intern Satellite nephelococcygia: Coastal Skull Let me begin this comment by stating that this will be the last comment that I will be posting, as this is the last week of my summer internship. With that said let me begin by stating the absolute obvious; Mountain weather is fickle. Although this fact has been known to me before, last night the mountain threw me a curve ball, busting (in my mind) an un-bustable forecast. Let me explain further, all indications put the summits in the fog for the duration of the night.

Return... 2008-07-31 09:30:00.000 - Jim Salge,  Temporary Observer Mirror to the past... I haven’t had the opportunity to write in this space for nearly a year, and it is truly a great feeling to be back at work on the summit. After working for the Observatory for the better part of 5 years, I moved out of the valley to Southern NH to teach high school science last summer. The experience has been everything I hoped it would be, both in the classroom, where I get to challenge the next generation of scientists, and in the mountains where I introduce

volunteer comment 2008-07-30 08:09:56.000 - Steve Mauran,  Summit Volunteer This has been an incredible week for me as a first time volunteer. Not knowing what to expect and admittedly a little nervous, things quickly began to happen in more ways than one. I got briefed on the duties of a volunteer when I arrived on Wednesday and on Thursday began to find my way through an unfamiliar kitchen, in an effort to produce a worthy meal. In the mean time a storm was bearing down on the summit bringing rain and wind gusts to 70 mph. Thursday saw the arrival

changing weather 2008-07-29 10:56:12.000 - Jeff Wehrwein,  Summit Intern Saturday's sunrise Yesterday morning we had a rare warm moment on the summit. As Steve, Dennis, Lisa, and I were (yet again) mounting the MeTEK sonic anemometer on the stage office, the wind was dead calm, the temperature was near 60, and the sun was shining brightly. Standing on the ladder, I had an unusual sensation of being too hot. Most days I wear long pants and a fleece when I'm outside, but yesterday I was much happier in shorts and a t-shirt. This summer, the weather on the summit has

seek the peak 2008-07-28 10:58:32.000 - Lisa Hodges,  Summit Intern The last few rays illuminate some high clouds. Saturday was a busy day on Mt. Washington, thanks to 250 hikers who ventured to the summit to Seek the Peak. At the summit, they were rewarded with views of over 40 miles, tours of the observatory, and hundreds of homemade cookies. (We’ve been enjoying the leftover cookies all day.) The event was a huge success. We raised over $97,000 through the hike-a-thon. Some members of the summit crew were allowed to venture down to the Seek the Peak banquet at the