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2007-07-17 16:47:21.000 – Elena Crete,  Summit Intern

The best 5am experience ever!

The Elena Crete Experience

I am a space grant intern working for the summer at the Bartlett research facility. As a part of my internship I was given a week to stay at the summit of Mt Washington. After 7 days surrounded by great views, blankets of fog and amazing people, I have a whole new perspective on my research. For the past few weeks I have been working on compiling the AMC hut data recorded over the last 16 years. In my week up here I have completed data sets for the Greenleaf, Carter, and Zealand huts. After entering row and rows of min max temperatures and precipitation data, it is extremely satisfying to finally learn how all the data had been collected.

While I have been up here I have basically job shadowed the observers who work up here all summer. I have followed them throughout their day as they collect min/max temperatures, AIRMAP filters and wind observations. Overall it has been an enlightening experience. It is comforting to learn that all the instruments you learn about in a basic meteorology class are used daily by the folks up here on Mt Washington. I have learned to use a sling psychrometer, read a barometer and hays chart and how to collect cloud observations. I have also experienced the intense team work that it takes to collect valuable weather data that can hopefully be used for future research projects.

As I leave here today I will take with me, knowledge to further my career in climatology, along with memories of great food, great sunsets and most of all great people.

Elena Crete,  Summit Intern