Earl Adams Photo
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Mount Washington Observatory Photo
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In the winter, Mount Washington lies at the confluence of three major storm tracks.
Moisture from as far as the Gulf of Mexico can travel to the mountain from a southerly
track, and snow and frigid temperatures from Canada and the Great Lakes can travel
from the northwest on “Alberta Clippers.” Perhaps best known are the
northeasters, which bring prodigious snows from Atlantic moisture. In addition to
these three storm tracks, the geography surrounding Mount Washington and its own
elevation enhance the cold, wind and cloudiness. The results of all these factors
are extreme weather phenomena involving cold, wind, fog, icing and precipitation.
As an example, the average wind velocity during the months of December through March
is more than 40 miles per hour (November just misses this group with an average
of only 39.7 miles per hour). Winter isn’t the only time for high winds. Every
month has had peak wind gusts measured at more than 136 miles per hour.
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Mount Washington Weather |
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Mountain Averages: |
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Annual temperature: |
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27.2° F |
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Annual precipitation (measured as water): |
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101.91 inches |
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Annual snow, ice pellets, hail: |
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314.8 inches |
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Annual wind speed: |
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35.3 mph |
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Annual number of days wind speed exceeds hurricane force (75 mph): |
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more than 100 per year |
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Mean number of days with heavy fog: |
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310.9 days |
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Mountain Records: |
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Low temperature: |
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-47° F – January 1934 |
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Maximum precipitation in 24 hours: |
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10.82 inches – October 1996 |
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Maximum annual snow, ice pellets, hail: |
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566.4 inches – 1968-1969 |
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Maximum wind: |
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231 mph – April 12, 1934 |
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Weather measurements taken at the summit. |
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Derek Brown/Mount Washington Observatory Photo
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Mount Washington Observatory Photos
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Jim Salge/Mount Washington Observatory Photo
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The wind, precipitation and temperature extremes have profound effects on the mountain’s
environment. The Presidential Range has the largest area of above-tree-line and
alpine vegetation in the eastern part of the United States. Trees cannot thrive
above the tree line because of the thin soils, cold temperatures, short growing
season and the destructively high winds, blowing snow and ice. In addition to the
effects of their velocity, high winds cause plants to lose moisture, which also
contributes to the challenges of the alpine region.
Mount Washington’s unusual environment is reflected in its vegetation, with
many plants here more typically found at higher altitudes or higher latitudes. Two
plants – the Mountain Avens and Robbins’ Cinquefoil – are found
almost nowhere else on earth.
Roads
to the Top
Mount Washington has a rich history – most of it having to do with reaching
the summit. Perhaps the claim that it has the worst weather in the world enhances
the inherent conflict between man and mountain, making Mount Washington even more
appealing to “conquer.” Footpaths and hiking trails, roads for carriages
and automobiles as well as the steam-engine-powered Mount Washington Cog Railway
have all been means to reach the top.
Jim Salge/Mount Washington Observatory Photo
Derek Brown/Mount Washington Observatory Photo
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Structures
at the Summit
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Jim
Salge/Mount Washington Observatory Photo
Rime Ice
“Whenever the temperature drops below freezing – and it does on 243
days of the average year – and the summit is in the clouds, rime ice forms
on all exposed surfaces. Very simply, rime ice is frozen fog. It is deposited whenever
super-cooled water droplets strike and immediately freeze to objects whose surface
temperature is freezing or below ...
“Rime ice accumulation is a function of air temperature and wind velocity.
Conditions ... are ideal when an air temperature in the upper 20s is combined with
an 80 or 90 mph wind. At such times the icing is heavy; as much as five or six inches
may accumulate in an hour. Frost feathers over 30 feet long have been observed ...
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From “The Home of Boreas: Mount Washington’s Meteorological Phenomena,”
by Greg Gordon, Mount Washington Observatory News Bulletin, Vol. 21, Number 2,
1980
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All roads to the summit – hiking trails, Auto Road and Cog Railroad –
converge at Mount Washington State Park. There, the Sherman Adams Building and the
Mount Washington Observatory’s Museum are open to visitors. Other structures
at the summit include a television transmitter, two FM-station broadcasting sites,
a host of two-way radio repeaters, the Cog Railway platform and the Auto Road Stage
Office (chained to the ground!).
The Sherman Adams Building houses the visitors center, with viewing from inside
or the rooftop and amenities for travelers. The building also houses the museum
run by the Mount Washington Observatory.
The Mount Washington Observatory carries on the work of tracking the summit’s
weather, having its roots in a private scientific expedition that spent the winter
of 1870-1871 on the summit. That led the U.S. Army Signal Service to establish a
weather station there from 1871 to 1892.
The current Observatory is a private-nonprofit, membership-supported organization.
Founded in 1932, it has provided continuous reporting for more than seven decades.
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Jim Salge/Mount Washington Observatory Photo
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The Observatory has three principal activities. These include environmental monitoring,
scientific research and educational activities.
The Observatory’s environmental monitoring goes beyond the weather observations
that are of primary importance. The staff also monitors cosmic radiation, air quality
and other related activities.
Scientific research ranges from basic research on subjects such as cloud physics
and atmospheric electricity to testing various equipment. The Observatory has tested
such things as visibility sensors, weather instruments, tents and outdoor clothing.
Perhaps the Mount Washington Observatory is best known for its educational initiatives.
These include museums (the Mount Washington Summit Museum and Weather Discovery
Center in the valley), summit overnight programs (Summer Seminars and winter “EduTrips”),
school outreach programs, a popular Web site and The Weather Notebook radio program
heard on many National Public Radio stations.
Find more information on Mount Washington, its weather and the Observatory at www.mountwashington.org.
Approach,
but with Respect
Born of the earth and shaped by the forces of nature over millions of years, Mount
Washington is the crown jewel of the White Mountains. Ever changing in its beauty
and mercurial in its moods, the mountain beckons explorers.
Approached with respect, Mount Washington holds something of interest for almost
everyone.
Jim Salge/Mount Washington Observatory Photo
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Mount Washington – A Chronology |
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1642 |
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The first recorded ascent of the mountain, by Darby Field |
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1784 |
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The first recorded overnight on the mountain, by companions of Rev. Jeremy Belknap
(who named the peak in honor of George Washington) |
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1819 |
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Hiking trail constructed from Crawford Notch to the top of Mount Washington –
the oldest continuously used hiking trail in America and, in part, a link in the
Appalachian Trail – by Abel and Ethan Crawford |
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1852 |
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Summit House built (the first hotel on the summit), by J. S. Hall and L. M. Rosebrook
(the 64-foot-long stone house was anchored by four heavy chains over its roof) |
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1853 |
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Tip Top House hotel, which stands today, built; and Glen Bridle Path opened to the
summit |
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1854 |
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The Carriage Road started by the Mount Washington Carriage Road Company |
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1856 |
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The Carriage Road Company went bankrupt – development of the road halted at
about the halfway point |
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1859 |
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The Carriage Road development resumed, by the Mount Washington Summit Road Company |
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1861 |
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Carriage Road opened August 8 |
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1869 |
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Cog Railway completed July 3 – the world’s first mountain-climbing “cog”
railroad |
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1870-1892 |
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Regular meteorological observations conducted by the U.S. Signal Service
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1873 |
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Second Summit House hotel opened |
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1878 |
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Summit Stage Office constructed |
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1899 |
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First motorized ascent by Freelan O. Stanley |
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1908 |
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All the buildings except Tip Top House burned |
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1915 |
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Summit House hotel replaced |
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1932 |
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Mount Washington Observatory pioneered by four men (daily records of the weather
on the summit have been kept since) |
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1968 |
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Tip Top House abandoned |
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1973 |
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Summit Museum created |
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1976 |
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Summit Stage Office rebuilt |
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1979 |
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Construction began on Sherman Adams Summit Building |
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1980 |
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State Park building replaced Summit House |
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1987 |
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Tip Top House restored |
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