Partial clearing on the summit, beautiful views!

2010-01-05 17:24:32.000 – Kyle Itterly,  Plymouth State Intern

Here comes the sun!

Today was my fifth day on the summit, and it is the first day my fellow intern Andrew Foley and I have experienced any decent stretch of good visibility. The day started off with relatively light winds and what a surprise, fog. Fairly significant rime ice had formed from the past few days, adding even more white to the foggy landscape.

As Brian went to do his 2 p.m. weather observation, Andrew and I followed along and were greeted to partial clearing, with many of the low cloud bases below the summit. This partial clearing provided us with views into the valley below and of the many different cloud types surrounding the peak. Beautiful lenticulars could be seen over the southern Presidentials, along with some higher altostratus and cirrus clouds.

Not long after, the sun made its way out from behind the altostratus clouds and left us with a bright white summit landscape. Andrew and I and the two volunteers for the week Ed and John took this rare opportunity to take some pictures and enjoy a walk around the summit. It was strange to actually be able to see all the buildings on the summit without being obscured by fog or snow. The slight fog still remaining in the air around the summit allowed us to see a fog bow while the sun was at our back. Pictures can not do this optical phenomenon justice, but its faint outline can still be seen stretching from near the summit marker across the blue sky.

As I approach the last night of my first shift of my internship, I have gained great respect for the observers who dutifully collect reliable weather data every hour of the day, no matter what the conditions are. There is a tight knit sense of teamwork and friendship between them and they have all made this an experience I will never forget. Thanks Brian, Mike and Ryan and I look forward to meeting the other shift of observers next week!

Kyle Itterly,  Plymouth State Intern