The Mount Alan A. Smith1 108 Rd. 50 Years Old Concord, Mass. 01742

Abstract

The Observatory celebrates its 50th Anniversary this year. The history of the establishment and of the early days of the Observatory is summarized, and its research programs, instru- mentation, and facilities from the early days to the present are briefly described.

1. Introduction

The Mount Washington Observatory celebrates its 50th An- niversary this year.2 The first Summit Crew of weather ob- servers reported for duty on top of New 's highest peak on 15 October 1932. The Observatory was established under the leadership of Dr. Charles Franklin Brooks, Professor of Meteorology at , first Director of Harvard's Blue Hill Meteorological Observatory in Milton, Mass., and, of course, a principal founder and the first Secretary (1919-1954) of the 2. The early days AMS (Fig. 1). It seems, therefore, most appropriate to exam- ine briefly the history of the organization Brooks founded, The Observatory got started because of early contact be- and to feature, on the cover, the Observatory's Charles tween Charles F. Brooks and Joseph B. Dodge, then Man- Franklin Brooks Memorial Tower, dedicated on 20 June ager of the network of high-country huts for hikers operated 1981. by the Appalachian Club (AMC). Hut system The Observatory derives its notoriety, if that is the appro- headquarters at , at the base of Mount priate word, from the fact that it is said to have "the worst Washington on the east side. In 1968, Joe taped an interview weather in the world," and that attribution comes directly with his friend Bob Ward, brother of Henry DeC. Ward from Brooks. In an article with that title, which appeared in (AMS Treasurer, 1947-1965). Their father was Robert De- the December 1940 issue of Appalachia, the journal of the Courcy Ward, also a Professor of Meteorology at Harvard, Appalachian Mountain Club, he compared the bad weather contemporary with Brooks, and the first President of the on Mount Washington with that to be found elsewhere in the AMS (1919-1921). A few of Joe's remarks follow: world, and he had this to say: "Thus it appears that while we . . We installed stations at all of our AMC cannot claim that Mount Washington is at times colder than huts, because we wanted to know more precisely what the anywhere else on earth, the severity of its climate at the worst runoffs were from the higher elevations, in order to design seems to be equaled or slightly exceeded only on the very culverts to replace those that had been washed out, thou- highest of middle or high latitudes and in Ant- sands of them, in that great flood of 1926. ... I started tak- arctica's 'home of the blizzard'." And, with even more mod- ing regular observations in 1928, and I became quite well ac- esty: "It is probable that there are worse mountains than quainted with Professor Goldthwait (head of the Geology Mount Washington, but observations do not seem to have Department at ) who urged me to be- been made upon them." (See Fig. 2.) come a member of the American Meteorological Society and suggested that ... I should go and see Dr. Brooks. . . . (Then) in the February issue of the 1932 AMS BULLETIN it was announced that the winter of '32-'33 was to be the 50th 1 The author was President of the Mount Washington Observatory anniversary of the first International Polar Year . . . and I from 1969 to 1981 and Executive Director to 1982. He is a Member decided well, this is the real reason to establish an Observa- of the AMS. tory on Mount Washington. . . . The commission in Copen- 1 Editor's note: See letter of congratulation from AMS President hagen, which was where the headquarters was for that Inter- Richard E. Hallgren to Mount Washington Observatory Executive Director Alan A. Smith, p. 995. national Polar Year, were enthusiastic about it because Dr. Brooks and Professor Goldthwait had both written them, 0003-0007/82/090986-10$06.50 © 1982 American Meteorological Society and they were very much pleased. . . ."

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FIG. 1. Dr. Charles Franklin Brooks, the leader in the establishment of the Mount Washington Observatory and first Director of the Blue Hill Meteorological Observatory, is pictured here at Blue Hill.

Then came the questions of logistics and support, impor- crew, were: Sal Pagliuca, killed in an accident while on mil- tant then as now. First, Dodge secured permission for winter itary duty during World War II; Bob Monahan, formerly occupancy of the "Stage Office" at the summit for the Auto College Forester at Dartmouth and now a Life Trustee of the Road that runs up the east side of the mountain. Then, on the Observatory; and Alex McKenzie, formerly associated with Memorial Day Weekend of 1932, with Brooks and others in McGraw-Hill, and still an active Trustee of the Observatory. the audience, Joe spoke before a meeting of the New Hamp- In its early days, the Observatory included an observer Academy of Science, which, on the basis of his presen- from the U.S. Weather Bureau among its Summit Crew. The tation, awarded him $400 (!) to get started. With what can officers and trustees comprised a number of Brooks' aca- only be described accurately as true Yankee ingenuity, he demic and business associates, both in and New scrounged equipment, instrumentation, and supplies from a ; one who was of particular importance was number of organizations throughout and, on Henry S. Shaw, then of , N.H., who contributed sub- 15 October 1932, the first observations began from that old stantially to the development of short wave radio communi- Stage Office (Fig. 3). Joe managed the operation by radio cation from the Summit, and later became President of Gen- and frequent personal visits from his base at Pinkham Notch. eral Radio Company, now GenRad. Gradually, however, The Mountain Men, all former members of the AMC hut more and more professional meteorologists came to be asso-

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FIG. 2. Scenes such as these at the Mount Washington Observatory have contributed to its notoriety for having "the worst weather in the world."

FIG. 3. The Mount Washington Observatory, March 1934. The anemometer shown is the one that measured the highest speed ever recorded (see Fig. 4 for close-up). (Photo by Harold Orne.)

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FIG. 5. Sal Pagliuca hunting for the instrument hidden under frost feathers during earliest days of the Observatory. (Photo by Harold Orne.)

Observatory, of necessity, investigated anomalous ultra FIG. 4. A close-up of the Observatory's anemometer that re- short-wave radio propagation. Short-wave transmitters were 1 1 corded the all-time high , 231 m h" (103 m s" ), on 12 installed at the summit, at Blue Hill Observatory, and at April 1934. (Photo by Harold Orne.)

ciated with the operation. The roster for 1959 (the 25th anni- versary) includes a number of names that will be familiar to readers of this BULLETIN: the President, after Brooks' death, was Wallace E. Howell, and the Scientific and Mountain staff included Luis Aldaz, Roland Boucher, Huntington Curtis, Joachim Kuettner, and Ronald Lavoie. In other years, Ray- mond Falconer, Robert Cunningham, Vincent Schaefer, and Myron Tribus were also involved. The scientific staff for 1982, the 50th anniversary year, has a somewhat more diver- sified background, reflecting as it does the Observatory's growth beyond its basic concern with meteorology (which continues) to a much wider range of activity, from cosmic ray monitoring to field measurements of the wind energy poten- tial throughout the state of .

3. Research programs

Research at the Observatory in its earliest days was primarily weather-oriented. The standard synoptic observations were conducted for the U.S. Weather Bureau; turbulence in the lee of the mountain was studied (inadvertently) with hydrogen balloons; there was considerable experimentation to develop a precipitation gage that would work satisfactorily in the high that prevail at the summit; and it might be said that considerable research was devoted to the problem of staying alive, and doing work, in the old Stage Office. But much effort was devoted to studies of radio transmis- FIG. 6. The multicylinder, the Observatory's ingenious instru- sion as well, in part because there was no other contact with ment that makes possible calculations of liquid water content, drop Dodge, at Pinkham, during the winter. Beginning in 1932 the size distribution, and the average drop diameter of a specific cloud.

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FIG. 7. NSF equipment at the Observatory. The metal frame on the left holds the nuclei sensing equip- ment, including the cold chamber (long vertical cyclinder), the compressor, and environmental controls. The teleprinter is to the right of the sensing equipment, and the electronic system is to the left and above the teleprinter on the bench. The electronics of the radio-telephone set-up are on the far right.

Pinkham Notch, a network that linked the observers with High winds and severe icing prevail in winter on Mount Brooks and Dodge. Transmission irregularities and the in- Washington; there are many "century days", with winds over terest of amateurs (such as Henry S. Shaw) led to the estab- 45 m s'1 (100 mi h_1) each year; and since ice builds up over all lishment of experimental stations from which various read- exposed surfaces, "frost feathers" of rime ice almost a meter ings were made. long, growing into the wind, are common (Fig. 5). Under Completion of one of the country's earliest FM transmit- these circumstances, one important facet of Observatory re- ting facilities on the summit in 1941 by the search has been the development of special instrumentation, marks another pioneering association for the Observatory, modified from its original design to meet the rigors of the as does the subsequent arrival of television at the summit in summit environment. 1954. In 1942, a direct short-wave radio link was established One outstanding example is the "rotating multicylinder" to the Weather Bureau Office in Portland, Me., and it is still instrument (Fig. 6) developed at the Observatory to investi- in use. Beyond that, the Observatory's radio communication gate the constitution of clouds; it may be used at both below capability today includes mobile and field units in addition freezing and above freezing temperatures. The instrument to base stations on several frequencies, and embraces rescue comprises six cylinders of varying diameter mounted coax- as well as business use. ially in tapering order on a motor-driven shaft. The rotating However, it is in terms of weather that the Observatory, multicylinder operates on the principle that the efficiency of still in the old Stage Office, established its individuality, for it a cylindrical collector is a function of droplet size, cylinder was there that the record wind of all time was measured—a diameter, and wind speed. Exposure of the instrument results peak gust of 103 m s"1 (231 mi h"1) on 12 April 1934 (Fig. 4). in selective collection of droplets by the cylinders. Measure- Here is one account written not long after. ments of the collection, in combination with measurements : Highest natural wind velocity ever to be re- of pertinent weather parameters, yield information on the corded anywhere in the world blasts Observatory. Sal- droplet size, size distribution, and liquid-water content of vatore Pagliuca clocks one-tenth of a mile of wind in any cloud. Over the years, the instrument has proved most 1.17 seconds, which gives corrected reading of 231 miles satisfactory, in comparison with much more recent and so- per hour. Fastest 5-minute average is 188 miles per hour. phisticated devices, including a laser nephelometer built by Fastest hour is 173 mph. In 24 hours, 3,075 miles of wind the Observatory's Scientific Director some years ago, and passes station. utilized on the mountain under an Observatory contract with

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FIG. 8. Ice beads on the test cable at the Observatory. (Photo by Lingel.)

the National Science Foundation to study the microstructure of clouds. The backup instrumentation appears in Fig. 7. Research programs at the Observatory have ranged over a wide variety of disciplines. Besides regular observations for the , current or recent activities in- clude: a state-wide analysis of wind-energy potential for the University of New Hampshire; field tests of icing on cables (Fig. 8) and rotor blades for the U.S. Army Cold Regions Re- search and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) at Hanover, N.H.; performance measurements of photovoltaic arrays in severe weather (Fig. 9) for M.I.T.'s Lincoln Laboratory; environmental testing of equipment and materials for a va- riety of companies and agencies; and, for the University of New Hampshire, continuous recording of variations in cos- mic-ray intensity. A further indication of the variety of research programs conducted on Mount Washington between 1943 and 1982, mostly with Observatory participation, is provided in Table 1. Information in the table is drawn primarily from reports published in the Observatory's quarterly News Bulletin.

4. The Observatory today

The Observatory today is housed in the west end of the Building, a steel-reinforced concrete struc- ture at the summit (1917 m or 6288 ft) completed by the state FIG. 9. Observer Kirsch monitoring M.I.T. solar panel at the of New Hampshire in 1980 (Fig. 10). The Observatory's Observatory. (Photo by Observatory Staff.)

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TABLE 1. Research programs at the Mount Washington Observatory or at the Summit, 1943-82.*

Project Sponsorship Year(s)

1) Standard meteorological observations (Class B Station) a) Synoptic, climatological, and weather records U.S. Weather Bureau/Environmental Satellite Services Administration/ 1932-82 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration b) Special records of winds over 80 knots (41 rns-1) Air Force Cambridge Research Labs. 1972 2) Meteorological instrumentation and measurement Pitot-tube anemometer for severe icing MWO 1965-72 Heated, recording wind vane MWO 1972 Plastic-coated 3-cup anemometer MAXIMUM, Inc. 1971 Snow fall and depth in high wind MWO 1971 Freeze-thaw measuring stakes Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory 1968 Icing detector for automatic weather stations National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 1972 Testing wind and icing detectors Meteorology Research, Inc. 1979 3) Cloud physics Icing on aircraft wings General Electric 1970 Jet engine icing U.S. Air Force 1943 Cloud properties General Electric/U.S. Air Force 1943 Ice nuclei counts, with NCAR counter National Science Foundation 1966-70 Microstructure of clouds National Science Foundation 1971-74 4) Atmospherics Electric charges on cloud particles Office of Naval Research 1961 Cloud scavenging of Sr90 Atomic Energy Commission 1960-61 Optical back scatter by clouds Raytheon 1969 Short-range laser beam attenuation in clouds Sanders 1964 Laser beam attenuation by clouds M.I.T., Lincoln Lab 1969-70 Monitoring of cosmic-ray intensities University of New Hampshire 1954-82 Pollutant monitoring University of 1974 5) Alternative energy sources Windpower at the summit National Environment Research Council 1977-78 Photovoltaic cell testing M.I.T., Lincoln Lab 1977-82 Field measurement of wind energy potential University of New Hampshire/National Research Laboratory 1979-81 Exposure tests of solar panels Mobil-Tyco 1979 Wind generator testing Power Group International 1980 Solar panel testing Solar Power Corp. 1981 6) Materials and equipment testing Antenna icing D.S. Kennedy Co. 1960 Antenna icing Raytheon 1962 Antenna wind loading Lockheed 1965 Microwave antenna de-icing Microfleet, Inc. 1972 Radomes M.I.T., Lincoln Lab 1964 Roofing materials Bird & Son, Inc. 1963-64 Plexiglass signs Rohm & Haas 1965-66 testing Polaris, Inc. 1964 Ice-releasing coatings Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory 1967-68 Helicopter icing tests Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory 1977-78 Icing and wind loads on cables Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory 1977-78 Radio communication in mountainous terrain Atlantic Marine Center 1978 Plastic coatings on steel AVCO 1981 Styrofoam roofing Dow Chemical 1981 7) Other Vegetable-growing under artificial light Sylvania 1964-65 Mountain shrews and voles University of 1965-68 Lichanometry for relative dating University of New Hampshire 1978 Mapping the Museum of Science 1978 Medical effects of intermediate altitude National Institutes of Health 1975-78 Documenting new building construction State of New Hampshire 1978-81 Museum planning International Magnetospheric Study, Health, Education, and Welfare 1979

•Sources of information: Mount Washington Observatory News Bulletin, 1960-82. quarters provide approximately 140 m2 of living space and Instruments also can be exposed on the railing of the tower 170 m2 of office and work , exclusive of the observation parapet (third level) or the superstructure (top level). In addi- tower and the utility room. tion, part of the flat roof above the Observatory is available The four-level Charles Franklin Brooks Memorial Obser- as a test platform; a 5.5 m X 10.4 m grid of steel girders has vation Tower (see cover) rises to 1923 m (6309 ft). The tower been installed there for securing heavy equipment, including incorporates a cold lab with a floor area of approximately 7 instrument and control shelters. m2 and 19 m2 exposure room with windows specially con- Special facilities within the Observatory include a profes- structed for accommodating sampling devices and sensors. sionally appointed dark room/photographic laboratory; a

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FIG. 10. Summit view of Mount Washington from "Homestretch."

radio/electronics research, test, and repair facility; a re- exposure to severe weather. One example is the unique, elec- search library; a workshop; and the weather room, where trically heated Pitot-static type anemometer, designed and most of the meteorological instrumentation and radio com- constructed at the Observatory to monitor damaging winds munication equipment is located. Data processing at the Ob- under icing conditions (Fig. 12). servatory is accomplished with a Digital Equipment Corpo- The Observatory's most important facility, however, is its ration MINC-11 modular instrument computer system, unique site, which is subject to extremes of meteorological, which permits automatic entry of signals from up to 64 in- climatic, biological, and ecological stress not found else- strument channels simultaneously, plus automated data where outside the deep polar regions. Over the 45-year inter- analysis and graphic presentation (Fig. 11). val 1933-1978, for example, mean annual precipitation at the The usual complement of meteorological instrumentation Observatory was 212.2 cm (83.55 in), and mean annual snow- is in place at the Observatory, modified where necessary for fall was 629.9 cm (248.0 in). The national snowfall record was

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FIG. 11. Staff Meteorologist Ken Rancourt at the new MINC computer which is used in observational and research programs at the Observatory.

once broken during the season September 1968-May 1969, For some part of the day, the summit is in cloud or fog, at when a total of 1438.7 cm (566.4 in) fell. least 300 days out of the year. The temperature measured at the summit has never risen over 22°C (72°F); the lowest re- corded is —44°C (—47°F) and the yearly average is —3°C (27°F). The mean hourly wind speed, from records published by the National Weather Service-Loo*/ Climatological Data, is 15.7 m s"1 (35.1 mi h"1) W. "Century Days," when wind gusts exceed 45 m s-1 (100 mi h_1), are frequent in winter and early spring. As noted above, the highest wind velocity ever recorded anywhere in the world was at the Observatory, 103 m s-1 (231 mi h'1), during a gust measured on 12 April 1934. The Observatory's two major non-research programs are both educational—publication of its quarterly, illustrated News Bulletin, and operation of the Mount Washington Museum, also in the new Summit Building, and open to the public. Exhibits in the museum treat the weather, history, geology, flora, and fauna of Mount Washington; the major scientific exhibit is a collection of almost all the Alpine wild- flowers, encapsulated in resin. The Mount Washington Observatory is a membership or- ganization; its members, both individuals and corporations, have provided most welcome support over the years, and continue to do so. Membership in the Observatory is open to all. Membership benefits include subscription to the News Bulletin, free admission to the museum at the summit, and a discount on all museum sales items ordered by mail. The research facilities and staff of the Observatory are available on a contract basis. For further information about the Observatory, contracting procedures or membership, FIG. 12. Greg Gordon holds "Old Faithful" Conover pitot, in use Please write: Observatory Director, Mount Washington Ob- since the early 1950s. servatory, Gorham, N.H. 03581.

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Acknowledgments. Thanks for assistance in checking facts and environmental setting. figures in this article are extended to the following: from the first On behalf of the American Meteorological Society, I Summit Crew, Alexander A. McKenzie; from the present Summit would like to personally congratulate you and the Crew, Guy Gosselin, Observatory Director; John Howe, Staff Engi- neer; and Kenneth Rancourt, Staff Meteorologist. Mount Washington Observatory staff as you celebrate the Observatory's 50th Anniversary. I'm sure I speak for all our private and government members on a job well done. Your vital service to the scientific fraternity will be appreciated for many more years to come. We look forward to the continued coop- Letter of 4 June 1982 to Alan A. Smith, Executive eration between the Observatory and the meteorologi- Director, Mount Washington Observatory cal community at large in the furtherance of our science. Dear Mr. Smith: Sincerely yours, The Mount Washington Observatory has provided Richard E. Hallgren the scientific community an excellent opportunity to President perform numerous research projects in its distinctive American Meteorological Society •

announcements1

Regional Climate Coordinating Office Agricultural Experiment Stations, non-agricultural activities will be integral parts of the regional climate program. These In September 1981, the National Climate Program Office efforts will include climatic attention to energy, water (NCPO) funded the Regional Climate Coordinating Office resources, tourism, industrial development, environmental (RCCO) at the State Water Survey and the Illinois issues, transportation, and construction. The RCCO will pro- Agricultural Experiment Stations, both located at the Univer- vide a central focus for all climatic activities within the North sity of Illinois. This is the first year of a proposed 4-year proj- Central region. ect developed under the aegis of the North Central Regional For further information, write: John L. Vogel, Director, Research Committee, NC-94, sponsored by the Agricultural RCCO; Illinois State Water Survey; Box 5050 — Station A; Experiment Stations of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Champaign, 111. 61820 tel: (217) 333-4261. The NC-94 Committee, devoted to the characterization and assessment of climate on agriculture and other renewable resources, devised a plan to demonstrate the feasibility of coordinating state climate services in the 12-state North Cen- tral region. The 12 states are: Illinois, , , , The Hans A. Panofsky Scholarship Fund , , , , , , , and . A key component of the Hans A. Panofsky, Evan Pugh Professor of Atmospheric initial structure of the plan is the RCCO. Science at State University, retired at the end of The purpose of the RCCO is to: improve the efficiency and August after 30 years at Penn State and nine earlier years at effectiveness of climate information dissemination at the University. His permanent home will be in La Jolla, state and regional level; oversee state climate centers par- Calif., where he can stay in touch with colleagues at the ticipating in regional climate studies; serve as a clearinghouse Scripps Institute of Oceanography. (For more biographical in- of information between state climate centers and other groups formation on Panofsky, see the item in About Our Members, (including federal agencies); and promote and administer p. 1061). regional climatic studies. Presently, the RCCO is exploring The Pennsylvania State University has founded a Hans A. methods of fostering cooperation and coordination and Panofsky Scholarship Fund in his honor. Contributions to the evaluating the benefits to be gained by having a regional fund may be sent to the Office of Gifts and Endowments, The climate program. Pennsylvania State University, 23 Willard Building, Universi- Although the NC-94 Committee is organized by the State ty Park, Penn. 16802. Checks should be made payable to The Pennsylvania State University and designated for the Hans A. Panofsky Scholarship Fund. Notice of registration deadlines for meetings, workshops, and seminars, deadlines for submittal of abstracts or papers to be presented at meetings, and deadlines for grants, proposals, awards, nominations, and fellowships must be received at least three months before deadline dates.— News Ed. (

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