Back at the Summit 2008-02-29 14:49:04.000 - Matthew Morin,  Space Grant Intern Mount Washington Sunrise. Hello everyone! Today is one of those days where I had no qualms with setting my alarm clock to earlier than usual. My motivation… a Mount Washington sunrise with virtually cloudless skies and light winds. I didn’t want to miss this rare sight given that the summit is usually in the clouds.My workload for this week consists of 95% research and 5% observer duties. For research, I’m analyzing ARVTP data with the hopes of making sense of inversions that set up along the mountain throughout

Time is all about what side you are on. 2008-02-28 03:00:54.000 - Ryan Knapp,  Staff Meteorologist In one of my American Studies classes I took, I was introduced to Zall’s Second Law which was about time. It goes: “How long a minute is, depends on which side of the bathroom door you are on.” Working at Mount Washington, I have tweaked this to reflect our feelings on time. It goes “How long a minute is, depends on which side of shift change you are on.” I like to call this Wednesdays First Law.As you may or may not be aware,

Short Storm Update 2008-02-27 03:01:56.000 - Kyle Paddleford,  Observer These were not here a few hours ago As of one o’clock this morning we had picked up just over 5 inches of new snow and it continues to fall lightly. Winds have remained fairly light, relatively speaking, through the storm but high enough to drift the snow around. I was quite surprised to see deep drifts on my way out to get the precipitation can after midnight, and figured there had to be upwards of a foot in the can but this was not the case. For most of the

Sarah 2008-02-25 20:57:20.000 - Summit Volunteer,  Summit Volunteer NULL Today is Monday, which makes it my 5th day on top of the mountain. The past 5 days have given the volunteers and the crew some amazing views: from sunrises (that I have regrettably been too tired to get up for) and sunsets, to beautiful views of the snow dusted "Presies," to glimpses of the sun reflecting off of the ocean, and the gorgeous, glittering rime ice that covers every surface of the summit outside. Isn’t this Mt Washington? The home of severe, brutal, unforgiving weather? The most "severe" thing I've

another comment 2008-02-24 20:20:57.000 - Stacey Kawecki,  Observer undercast and alpine glow Two days in a row with absolutely beautiful weather …the real kicker, it’s going to last into tomorrow. I can scarcely remember the last time I got this much sunshine at the summit, it was probably sometime in early October! Three days and three nights of being in the clear, with very little sky cover is almost unheard of. However, our bubble is about to be tragically popped, and a new smaller bubble of hope will be formed. In the past couple of weeks, the nice fluffy snow

NULL 2008-02-24 01:14:24.000 - Kyle Paddleford,  Observer EduTrippers enjoying the sunset We did miss the lunar eclipse of a few nights ago due to the ever present fog, however the moon has been shining bright ever since which has really helped out with nighttime observations. It was really bad timing too. The summit went into the fog just prior to the start of the eclipse, and then we broke out of the fog a few hours after the event was done. I guess we’ll have to try again in a few more years. With the exception of missing the eclipse,

Morning Radio Call 2008-02-22 15:24:04.000 - Ryan Buckley,  Summit Intern Sunrise Before Radio Call The following is part of what an actual morning weather report sounds like. The radio names have been changed to protect their owner’s identities. GFA 912 this is 43delta with your morning weather report….. Pause for about 60 seconds allowing the listeners the opportunity to gather pencil and paper).Good morning, (letting them know that I am about to start). The temperature currently on the summit is -2.9 degrees Fahrenheit……Yesterdays maximum temperature... -2 degrees… Yesterdays minimum temperature… -17 degrees…..the winds currently on the summit are west at

Tin Whistles and Clear Skies 2008-02-21 14:16:56.000 - Mike Finnegan,  IT Observer A Singing Cat? So, we’ve finally cleared out of the fog. Looking at the ravine web cam this morning, we could see only one cloud in the sky. Unfortunately, it was positioned on top of us like a hat. A few hours ago the wind ushered in a bit of drier air and blew the hat right off our summit. It’s always interesting to go from seeing 300 feet to nearly 100 miles in just a few minutes. And now for something completely different!Dog is to harmonica as

Will we see the lunar eclipse 2008-02-20 15:03:52.000 - Stacey Kawecki,  Observer NULL There will be a lunar eclipse tonight. The question is, will we see it from the summit, or will we have to experience it second hand either by accounts from valley dwellers or pictures on the internet? As it so often happens, while driving to the base of the Auto Road this morning, among mostly blue skies, there was a single deck of clouds, covering the top of Mount Washington. The clouds have been toying with our emotions since arriving, occasionally showing us a playful glimpse of

Volunteer experience 2008-02-19 17:35:01.000 - Al Sukowaski,  Summit Volunteer On the summit. Well it has been a week of varied weather here on the summit. I’ve seen temperatures below 16 below with winds chills of 58 below, winds of 30 mph gusting up to 105 mph, visibility of 50 feet to over 120 miles and fog, snow and rain. I braved 70 mph winds to shovel ice and snow off the tower and I hiked around the summit in relatively calm winds and enjoyed spectacular views of the valley below.I cooked meals for the observers and staff along with an