Another #MWOMetMonday is here! 2015-11-16 20:31:20.000 - Kaitlyn O'Brien, Co-Director of Summit Operations   @MWObs What causes the extreme weather at Mt Washington? Not highest peak, even on The East Coast. #MWOMetMonday — gwhizkids (@gwhizkids) November 16, 2015     Today, @gwhizkids asked a great question about what causes the extreme weather on the summit of Mount Washington.   Certainly Mount Washington is not the tallest peak on the East Coast (For one, Mt. Mitchell in North Carolina stands at 6,683 feet, topping us by 395 feet!). But, Mount Washington is the tallest peak north of North Carolina and east

Comparing Wind Speed at Different Locations 2015-11-14 20:38:32.000 - Michael Dorfman, Weather Observer/IT Specialist   The Mount Washington Observatory has a regional network of 19 different mountainous automated weather stations. This includes 6 sites every 1000 feet along the Mount Washington Auto Road from base to summit.  We’ve recently installed anemometers at our 4000 and 5300 foot sites in hopes to better record wind speeds above tree line on Mount Washington. Our 4000 foot site is located near an old Signal Corps foundation block, and is rumored to occasionally have wind speeds rivaling the summit. Our 5300’ site is our

Calendars and Pictures 2015-11-12 17:41:10.000 - Ryan Knapp, Weather Observer/Staff Meteorologist   Looking at our 2015 calendar, it is weird to think 2016 is only ~49 days away (as of this writing). The year 2015 felt like it went by in a flash, at least for me. With 2015 coming to a close, that means our, and maybe your, wall calendars will soon be obsolete. Luckily, for the third year now, I have put together a few Mount Washington Observatory calendars to replace your soon-to-be obsolete calendar. This year we have not just two but three to choose from; all

Seasonal Changes On The Summit 2015-11-10 17:35:13.000 - Andrew Henry, Summit Intern   As the seasons change on the summit, so do the number of visitors and staff. During the summer months, thousands of people visit the summit of Mount Washington via the Mount Washington Auto Road, the Mount Washington Cog Railway, and various hiking trails that lead to the summit. Many of these visitors stop in the Extreme Mount Washington Museum to learn about Mount Washington Observatory’s history. Members of the observatory frequently sign up for tours of the observatory weather station during the summer months. To accommodate for this

#MWOMetMonday 2015-11-09 21:08:18.000 - Kaitlyn O'Brien, Co-Director of Summit Operations   #MWOMetMonday When it's warmer at the summit than at lake level (Winnipesaukee ~500') what does that indicate?— Anthony Monaco (@FrankMonaco13) November 9, 2015   We received a great question from one of our fans for today’s #MWOMetMonday!   Sometimes under certain atmospheric conditions, we actually report a warmer temperature on the summit than the valley. Why does that happen?   That seems a little odd, considering that the relationship between temperature and pressure is directly proportional. (Yikes! What does that even mean?)   Let’s take a closer look at

What I am Thankful For... 2015-11-06 15:37:28.000 - Michael Kyle, Weather Observer/IT Specialist   With Thanksgiving only being a few weeks away, our Financial/Administrative Assistant, Mary Anne, challenged the rest of the staff to write one thing per day that we are thankful for until Thanksgiving Day. Since I am leaving the Observatory in a few days to pursue another job opportunity, I decided to take on Mary Anne’s challenge and create my list of 26 things I am thankful for, here and now. I am thankful for… The days I have spent working and living on the summit at

Feeling the Force of Mount Washington's Winds 2015-11-04 21:01:51.000 - Adam Gill, Summit Intern   The beginning of this shift was exciting wind wise up on the summit. Shortly after arriving on Oct. 24th for shift change, a warm front approached us from the south and caused some snow to start falling. By the late afternoon, the snow had switched to freezing rain and was accumulating fast. Wind speeds also ramped up to being sustained over 70 mph. After dinner, all the people on the summit went outside with a sled to be blown across the ice covered deck just

Halloween from the Summit 2015-10-31 17:11:28.000 - Mike Carmon, Co-Director of Summit Operations   Happy Halloween from the summit!   It’s hard to believe how dramatically the weather changed from yesterday to today--it's almost as if Mount Washington has dressed itself in a costume of sunshine, calm winds, and warm temperatures for Halloween 2015! After winds in excess of 100 mph on Friday, with gusts as high as 123 mph, conditions took a big turn today. The more placid weather conditions allowed us to get out and enjoy the sunshine!   One of our "friends" that we met last Halloween

Thoughts From Dennis 2015-10-29 12:55:06.000 - Dennis Vienneau, Summit Museum Attendant   Another shift nears its end as I compose this comment. I have been a member of the Observatory for many years and have worn many hats during that tenure: teacher extern, summit volunteer, museum docent and most recently as the museum attendant. Each role has offered many rewarding experiences, from "crunching" achieved cloud altitude data for a UNH research scientist, to learning how to cook and bake successfully at altitude, to interacting with many of the Observatory's fans and weather fanatics. Most of my time on the summit

#MWOMETMONDAY on a Tuesday! 2015-10-27 19:37:13.000 - Andrew Henry, Summit Intern   We had a great question referring back to my last blog which was about snowfall statistics on the summit.   This week, Joshua asked if there is a correlation between strong El Niño years and the amount of snow seen on the summit.      Before going into depth about the correlation between El Niño and snowfall at Mount Washington Observatory, it is important to understand what El Niño is. El Niño is the warm phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation, commonly referred to as ENSO. It