Brian
New member
To all who are interested in getting a better idea on what the weather will be like on the mountain peaks, you can use the following site:
http://www.rap.ucar.edu/weather/model/?model=eta
This site displays the model forecasts at several different levels. For the Whites, the two 850 mb maps, temperature and humidity, and winds will give you an excellent idea of what will be going on at the White's summits. (850 mb is about 5000 feet.) In any case, its a lot better than looking at the surface maps which will be quite different.
You can almost guarantee that if the higher humidity green areas are over the mountains the Presidentials (at least) will be in the clouds, especially if there are strong winds. The temperatures are also very indiciative. Of course if you are going to higher peaks (1000 more feet to Mt Washington) the temps will be lower by about 4 C. THat drop will be even more if it windy due to local lifting and cooling. The wind speeds are tougher as we all know that these are very dependent upon which peaks one is on. For example, for Mt Washington you can double the forecast speed if the wind is west or northwest, whereas if it is south you have to actually slightly reduce it by 10 to 20 percent.
Of course, if the model forecast is itself a bust, well, there isn't too much you can do. It helps to check every day. The models are run at 12Z (7 AM EST) and 00Z (7 PM EST) each day. You can see how stable the forecasts are that way.
Have fun and be safe!
Whatch the cold this weekend. It will be nasty and windy!
Brian
http://www.rap.ucar.edu/weather/model/?model=eta
This site displays the model forecasts at several different levels. For the Whites, the two 850 mb maps, temperature and humidity, and winds will give you an excellent idea of what will be going on at the White's summits. (850 mb is about 5000 feet.) In any case, its a lot better than looking at the surface maps which will be quite different.
You can almost guarantee that if the higher humidity green areas are over the mountains the Presidentials (at least) will be in the clouds, especially if there are strong winds. The temperatures are also very indiciative. Of course if you are going to higher peaks (1000 more feet to Mt Washington) the temps will be lower by about 4 C. THat drop will be even more if it windy due to local lifting and cooling. The wind speeds are tougher as we all know that these are very dependent upon which peaks one is on. For example, for Mt Washington you can double the forecast speed if the wind is west or northwest, whereas if it is south you have to actually slightly reduce it by 10 to 20 percent.
Of course, if the model forecast is itself a bust, well, there isn't too much you can do. It helps to check every day. The models are run at 12Z (7 AM EST) and 00Z (7 PM EST) each day. You can see how stable the forecasts are that way.
Have fun and be safe!
Whatch the cold this weekend. It will be nasty and windy!
Brian
