Carbon Footpring Project 2008-06-05 17:06:55.000 - Natalie Martin,  Summit Intern Spring Commute Lisa and I have been working on calculating the observatory’s carbon footprint and hope to complete our project this summer. I have been figuring out the transportation side of the equation with help from the auto road. We can now calculate how many gallons of gas and diesel we use each year, our miles per gallon for our vehicles, and a conversion factor to find out how many pounds of CO2 the vehicles produce each year. With preliminary numbers in place it is looking like we are doing

Carol 2008-06-04 06:22:43.000 - Summit Volunteer,  Summit Volunteer Enjoying the weather room Eight days on the Summit for a first time volunteer have just flown by... so many new and exciting experiences to share, starting with 70MPH winds gusting as we were greeted at the Summit by the downgoing crew who helped unload our gear. Next we met with the previous volunteers who gave an update on the pantry, then on to the weekly crew meeting! The Observatory windows were covered in ice, but by the afternoon we were treated to the big view and we got outside to take

NULL 2008-06-03 11:16:17.000 - Summit Volunteer,  Summit Volunteer Me enjoying the sunset This is my second tour volunteering and it's even better than last. Wearrived early Wed morning to see rime ice coating everything. Just enoughfor us to marvel at it's beauty in late May and then it melted later inthe day. The first two days were clear, we could see forever and then thefog set in. Count out about 50 rocks and that's it. I could hear the cogtrain and people but couldn't see it when it stopped here at the peak tolet off passengers. Other days, the train

Feelings of June 2008-06-01 20:42:39.000 - Mike Finnegan,  IT Observer NULL June 1st. For many, this brings a feeling of absolute summer. For those in school, vacation has already begun or is very near. Outdoor activities include paddling, climbing on rocks that are not so cold, and hiking without eroding the trails. Back in Burlington, VT there will be talented street performers who I can give a few dollars to and in the NEK there will be field parties accompanied by fire flies/lightening bugs. Music can be played outside. Yup, summer is pretty great – it just hasn’t moseyed its

NULL 2008-05-31 14:20:16.000 - Lisa Hodges,  Summit Intern Thursday Springtime in New England has always been my favorite time of year. The approach of summer never fails to boost my mood. From mud puddles to late season Nor’easters, the weather of the northeast continues its predictably fast-changing pattern. The sun shines longer and longer each day as the flowers begin to bloom and the trees begin to leaf out. This spring, however, was slightly different for me. I spent March and April adjusting to the gray drizzle of Portland, OR, where I go to school, only to return to New

Interns and anemometers and high winds, oh my! 2008-05-29 20:59:05.000 - Jeff Wehrwein,  Summit Intern The sun split by a cloud as it sets. Hi! My name is Jeff Wehrwein, and I'm a new summer intern at the Observatory. I recently graduated from Middlebury College, and I am excited to be spending the summer on top of the highest peak in the northeast. Both yesterday and today have been sunny, cold, and windy, so I have been spending most of my time inside. This has given me a chance to learn about the daily operation of the observatory, as well

Brrrr...in May 2008-05-28 17:23:01.000 - Stacey Kawecki,  Observer Just a little bit colder! This is not going to be a comment about the trials and tribulations of the imminent Shift Change Day, even if it is a Wednesday. Something a little more exciting happened today…we broke a daily low temperature record! The previous record for May 28th was 19 degrees, and this morning the temperature bottomed out at a ‘mere’ 16 degrees. I’ll tell you something…it is quite a change from a humid, muggy, 90 degree day in NJ to a crisp 18 degree summit with rime, 60 mph winds,

Ted Comment 1 2008-05-27 13:44:54.000 - Ted Letcher,  Summit Intern First break in the clouds As I round out my first week here on the Rock Pile, the most apt phrase to describe the past seven days is “season change.” When I arrived on the summit last Wednesday the temperatures were only in the upper 20s to lower 30s, and huge fingers of rime ice pointed into the howling wind. As the week progressed the summit shed the clouds that engulfed it for the first half of my shift and temperatures warmed comfortably to the upper 40s. I was even

Unofficial Start of Summer 2008-05-26 16:51:43.000 - Brian Clark,  Observer Lenticular Clouds at Sunrise Today, Memorial Day, marks the unofficial start of summer for many people. Community swimming pools open back up for the first time since Labor Day, it’s acceptable to wear white again(if you even follow that fashion “rule” to begin with), and the minds of school children all over the country begin to focus more on summer vacation and less on school work. Well, I suppose these days that only applies for school children that actually have a summer vacation.After a nearly week long streak of cold,

Auto Road Open 2008-05-25 18:35:53.000 - Steve Welsh,  IT Observer First Stage Coaches Of The Season After several days of freezing fog and snow today was a very pleasant change with sun, blue skies, warm temperatures and low winds. At last we could get some outside work done! This morning Natalie and I mounted and connected up a new Trango Broadband Wireless radio to the top of the tower. This device will link to the ever expanding mesonet as well as providing backup internet service to the observatory. This afternoon Ted and I reburied a small section of our fiber