Summit Christmas Song 2016-12-25 16:55:43.000 - Ryan Knapp, Weather Observer/Staff Meteorologist   Over the years I have done “summitized” parodies of Christmas stories/songs and since I am working this year, I figured I'd add to that portfolio. In the past, I did a parody on the poem/song “The 12 Days of Christmas” titled “The 12 Days of Summit Christmas.” Another one was “Twas the Night Before Christmas” with an obs spin on how the story goes. This year, I am putting a twist on the song “The Christmas Song” which I am titling “Summit Christmas Song”. So as your reading

115+ MPH Winds for Christmas? 2016-12-24 10:09:54.000 - Tom Padham, Weather Observer/Meteorologist   Santa looks to be bringing plenty of wind to the summit crew this year on top of our presents! Low pressure will strengthen overnight as it tracks through southern Canada, with a very tight pressure gradient likely resulting in winds over 100 mph from midnight tonight through the morning Christmas Day. As of right now models are indicating winds will likely top out near 115 mph (category 3 hurricane strength) around sunrise, adding a bit of excitement to our Christmas morning! Out of curiosity, I decided to

♩♫♪ I'm Dreaming Of A White Christmas ♩♫♪ 2016-12-23 21:32:53.000 - Ryan Knapp, Weather Observer/Staff Meteorologist   Since starting with the Observatory back in 2005, I have spent six of my Christmas’ on the summit of Mt Washington. One big plus about working up here on Christmas Day is the ability to have the postcard worthy White Christmas as songs, TV shows, movies, etc all suggest Christmas should look like. Not every year was stellar for snowfall; however, a lot or a little, all that really mattered is that every year up here looked like a White Christmas. Adding to

Hectic Week on the Summit! 2016-12-20 13:20:15.000 - Ben Brownell, Summit Intern     Ben Brownell, Summit Intern

Astronomical Winter vs Meteorological Winter 2016-12-17 15:56:13.000 - Adam Gill, Weather Observer/IT Specialist   Meteorological winter begins on December 1st while the astronomical winter does not begin until the 21st. There are a few reasons as to why meteorologist uses different dates for the beginning and ending of seasons as compared to the calendar. The main reason we have seasons start almost a month before astronomical seasons is because of temperature. Average temperatures are colder in December, January, and February rather than January, February, and March. Up on the summit, the average temperature in December is 10.1°F where in March

It's Cold, and That's All We're Talking About! 2016-12-15 13:20:54.000 - Mike Carmon, Senior Weather Observer & Education Specialist   The coldest air mass of the young (meteorological) winter season is currently pouring into New England, and will continue to do so today through tonight. We're expecting temperatures bottoming out around 30-35 below zero F during the wee hours of Friday morning. We're not strangers to these sorts of bitter temperatures on Mount Washington's summit. However, over the last few winters, it's generally late January or February before we experience this sort of polar air outbreak. In December of 1998,

Baby, It's (Going To Be) Cold Outside 2016-12-13 22:10:28.000 - Ryan Knapp, Weather Observer/Staff Meteorologist   A broad upper level low centered near the Hudson Bay will slowly be creeping east over the coming days swinging a trough deep across the eastern half of the US. This will result in cold air from the arctic pouring down over the lower 48 plunging the mercury in the coming days.There are several other factors involved but this isn’t a forecast discussion and this comment is to address two questions - one we are already getting and one that is sure to come

Climate Comparisons 2016-12-11 10:29:54.000 - Tom Padham, Weather Observer/Meteorologist   While doing a bit of research for an upcoming education program I decided to do some comparisons with Mount Washington’s climate to our neighboring valleys. I wondered just how different our climate is from the surrounding terrain, and if I could find a populated area with a similar climate. After graphing the average annual temperature for Mount Washington compared to Berlin (roughly 15 miles to our north) and North Conway (15 miles south) it’s pretty noticeable that the summit runs about 15-20°F colder than both locations through the year. Since

TechWomen TechGirls Event 2016-12-09 16:59:42.000 - Taylor Regan, Observer   A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to speak at a TechWomen Ambassadors Week event held at the White Mountain Community College campus in Berlin, NH. The event, titled “STEMspiration – inspiring girls to explore STEM careers” targeted 9th grade girls in the region, and hosted a variety of speakers to share their career experiences and show a variety of possible paths available in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics based fields (STEM). This is the second year the Observatory was asked to present, and it was a great experience! After

An Exceptionally Snowy Start to December 2016-12-05 08:57:02.000 - Mike Carmon, Senior Weather Observer & Education Specialist   December 1st is the first official day of meteorological winter. Generally speaking, winter on Mount Washington is considered to begin much earlier than this—back in October. Although we had seen a few minor snow events throughout the months of October and November, a switch seems to have flipped once the calendar turned the page to the month of December 2016. Since Thursday, December 1st, we’ve received a total of 21.3" of snowfall…and counting, as another round of snowfall has just commenced as