Shift vs Shift 2015-05-24 19:19:38.000 - Ryan Knapp, Weather Observer/Staff Meteorologist   In my nine years working on the summit, I have witnessed and experienced a few rivalries. When I was an intern years ago, the first one the Observers made me aware of was the “Good Weather Shift” vs the “Bad Weather Shift.” Over the course of the winter, one shift would typically average a larger amount of days with milder temperatures, lower winds, and great visibilities while the other shift would be stuck in the fog, with extreme cold, and extreme winds. However, these titles were rarely set

Mount Washington's Iceberg 2015-05-22 17:10:10.000 - Will Hatheway, Intern       When hiking around Mount Washington you never know what you will find given our dramatic weather. While hiking on the trails, one of our summer interns came across this large ice block frozen in a basement. To give you a perspective on the size of this giant ice block, it comes just two feet shy of the top of the basement and fills the whole room. Now how would you like to come home to your basement filled with this? Unfortunately this ice block will not be melting

A Wonderful Volunteer Week on the Summit 2015-05-20 18:51:23.000 - Steve Crossman, Summit Volunteer   Another shift as an Observatory volunteer is sadly coming to a close. We started the shift with a tenuous ride up the ice covered road with the wind howling. Winter wasn’t quite ready to release its grip on the mountain. Once up top we did the shift change and then got about our daily chores. The prior shift’s volunteer had left a large piece of ham so the getting the first night’s supper on the table was especially easy. The rest of the week’s meals

Kicking Off Summer 2015-05-17 14:29:13.000 - Nathan Flinchbaugh, Summit Intern   Today is Sunday which means I have now been at the summit of Mount Washington for a total of three whole days. It is hard to quantify how much I have learned, and the awesome in the hours I’ve been here. I have been a student of meteorology for three years now which has certainly helped me learn the ins and outs of weather forecasting, but putting it to practice atop the Northeast’s highest peak, is already proving to be an experience of tremendous value.                 My name is

From Glaze to Haze 2015-05-15 14:31:28.000 - Mike Carmon, Co-Director of Summit Operations   Our shift's arrival to the summit on Wednesday was shrouded in fog and caked in slippery glaze ice. It was not exactly the welcome we were expecting, but Mount Washington is not exactly known for its warm hospitality. Nevertheless, we braved the slick roads and low visibilities and made it to the summit in decent time (thanks to the chains on our tires).   It never ceases to amaze me when I witness the amount of glaze ice that can accrue on the summit after a

Snow is Quickly Melting on the Summit! 2015-05-12 18:44:44.000 - Michael Dorfman, Weather Observer/IT Specialist   The last few days have been beautiful here on the summit! Changing my heavy-duty winter EMS outfit out with my lighter-weight summer EMS gear feels so nice. I even managed to get a short-sleeve ob in this week! As temperatures have warmed, even hitting 90 in the southern part of the state, the snow pack on the summit has dwindled. The only snow that remains on the summit is in isolated patches, and even those patches will be gone soon. Looking north along the

Stalled Out Sunday 2015-05-10 17:57:27.000 - Nate Iannuccillo, Summit Intern   If you’ve glanced at the forecast lately, you already know that it’s going to be a soggy next couple of days. With thunderstorms looking pretty likely this afternoon, I thought it would be interesting to highlight the frontal activity that will produce this week’s wet weather.  The origins of these conditions began with a low pressure system racing through Canada. While the system strengthened, a deep cold front stretched down into the United States, but as the storm spun northeast towards Greenland, the approaching front stalled just north of New

Observing the World With My Ears 2015-05-09 18:04:20.000 - Ryan Knapp, Weather Observer/Staff Meteorologist   Friday, everyone at the Observatory took turns to go out for a hike. While Kaitlyn went to Mt. Clay (see yesterday's comment), I chose to go east into the Alpine Garden, out to Lion Head, and back up the summit cone. The surrounding mountains and distant vistas were a sight to behold. The earthy smell of the melt water rushing all over the mountain was a hearty scent to take in. The sun shining overhead felt warm on the skin and couldn’t help but make

B&H: Breaking and Hiking! 2015-05-08 19:21:21.000 - Kaitlyn O'Brien, Co-director of Summit Operations   Today was one of those days that begged you to get outside, and I couldn’t pass it up! We started off under nearly clear skies and by 7AM the temperature was already 47 degrees. The wind was practically non-existent, allowing for the sound of trickling water from the melting snow to be clearly heard as it rushed through the rocks below; searching for the most direct route off the summit. After a productive morning, I headed out for an afternoon hike over to Mount Clay.    Looking

One Last Sunrise 2015-05-07 15:57:49.000 - Adam Freierman, Summit Intern   Wednesday was the last day of my winter internship at the Observatory, and so I felt obliged to get up to see the sunrise for a final time. I’m usually upstairs in the weather room by 6:40 for our morning radio weather report to the AMC, but the last time I was able to really sit and watch a sunrise was probably back in March, right after daylight savings began. Wednesday’s show wasn’t spectacular, but it was crisp and quick and struck me because of how far north the