Royal Sunset 2008-04-06 08:28:30.000 - Ryan Buckley,  Summit Intern Last night’s sunset was the most spectacular sunset that I have ever seen. With an undercast covering the west landscape the sun sank beneath the clouds. Accents of gold turned into colors as noble as Phoenician Purple.The clock stuck three (obs time) and I was gone, 10 hours of work behind me, I geared up for a peaceful time alone in the mountains. Thoughts scattered from weeks of working on a project riddled with road blocks, the realization of turning 21, the up coming summer classes in the city and for

In Need of Change 2008-04-05 16:20:03.000 - Mike Finnegan,  IT Observer From FZFG to BKN/// This mountain is a very inspiring place – it is unfortunate that now is not one of those times for me. I’ve been trying to think of something to write, but not much is coming. I’m experiencing one of those rare “more of the same” feelings. Observations come every hour, and I go outside to make sure that things are as they should be…the continued formation of rime and glaze ice on the instruments needs to be knocked off again, freezing drizzle is still blowing

spring 2008-04-03 12:41:18.000 - Stacey Kawecki,  Observer 4:15 am EST rolls around and I roll (or hop, seeing how I’m on the top bunk) out of bed. It is the beginning of a new week, Kyle is back from his vacation, and I’m back on days for the week. All reasons to be happy and joyful. However, upon waking, I must admit to some crankiness. We were in and out of the clouds, temperatures were around four degrees above zero (a warm start to this week compared to our last week on the summit) and winds were blowing at close

Rain, sleet, 100 mph winds, and lightning... at the same time! 2008-04-02 01:11:24.000 - Matthew Morin,  Space Grant Intern Hays chart At 15 minutes before the synoptic hours (00:00, 06:00, 12:00, and 18:00 UTC), the observer must retrieve the precipitation can in order to measure the 6-hour accumulation. This task, normally simple during the warm season, is often times difficult and somewhat risky this time of year due to icy conditions and high winds. Today we had both, but to a greater degree than usual. Spring is a “transition” season where there are frequent clashes of warm and cold air

Volunteer Thoughts 2008-03-31 23:08:35.000 - Ed OMalley,  Summit Volunteer The Obs. I grew up on the coast of New Jersey (and live there still), ocean on one side, bay on the other. Ever since I was little, I've liked the water. The fact that my parents took me in the ocean when I was just a baby probably didn't hurt! For many years, I've spent a lot of time in, on, under and near the water - usually salt, but sometimes fresh. Sailing, fishing, swimming, diving, kayaking... - you get the idea. Consequently, I was almost always near the coast,

Sunset and Crampons 2008-03-30 21:24:20.000 - John Bauhs,  Summit Volunteer Sunset. Today's comments offer a discussion relating crampons and sunsets. If you're notfamiliar with crampons, they're boot spikes that can take a sedate pair of snowboots and transform them into frightening-looking agents of destruction. Imagineangry shark's teeth on the bottom of your feet. Now, you may be asking yourself,what could crampons and sunsets possibly have anything to do with each other?Prior to my first visit to the Mt. Washington Observatory last October, I had neverimagined that I would own a pair of crampons. As you might imagine, crampons reallyaren't needed

Blowing Snow 2008-03-29 21:26:58.000 - Steve Welsh,  IT Observer Marty Resting Yesterday we had over six inches of nice fluffy snow and for once, really calm winds. So the entire summit ended the day completely decked in white. This doesn’t happen very often since most snow that falls here usually blows straight off the summit and down into the surrounding ravines. Today the winds went up to near 100 mph and all the snow above tree line took to the air in one great mass of swirling whiteness. For most of the day we have had very impressive ground blizzards

Correcting a wind gust 2008-03-28 22:13:25.000 - Brian Clark,  Observer My Math 148.5144.7At first glance these are just two dimensionless numbers; two numbers with a difference of 3.8 or about 2.6%. Of course, by now you’re probably curious to know what these numbers mean and where I’m going with this.Well, both are wind gust measurements.The first value of 148.5 miles per hour was measured a week ago on March 21 as the peak wind speed for the day. This wind gust was measured using our Pitot Tube Static Anemometer in conjunction with the Setra pressure transducer. The pitot anemometer is

Surprises and Reflection 2008-03-27 22:00:49.000 - Matthew Morin,  Space Grant Intern Crepuscular rays Last night when I looked at the numerical models, I saw that tomorrow morning’s dew point depressions (the temperature minus the dew point) would be 0 to 3 degrees. This usually indicates that the summit would be in the clouds and I would be left with not much of a view out the observatory windows. However, this morning I awoke to find that the sun was shining brightly and the visibility was around 45 miles. The winds today were light by summit standards, blowing around 30 to

Whats Next? 2008-03-26 23:29:51.000 - Ryan Knapp,  Staff Meteorologist Humans are always seeking what is next. When we were younger, it was trivial stuff like what we would do next before it was time for bed. When we start to go to school, we found ourselves waiting for the next semester to improve or take a new subject. If a year wasn’t going very well, we would think how bad this year was but next year we would rule the school. We graduate and anticipate what is next, college or the real world and we head down that path greeted