Thanks for your question and your interest in the membership supported Mount Washington Observatory.
Volcanic eruptions can play a role in global weather patterns but not always. A lot of factors play into how they influence weather patterns.
Some of these factors are the materials they spew, height they reach in the atmosphere, location, dispersion of the material, and time of year just to name a few. If some or all of the factors line up just right, localized or global climates may be slightly altered.
As for Mount Redoubt's eruption, nothing I have read on climatology sites or NOAA endorsed sites has mentioned anything about this eruption. The weather pattern we are in is similar to the one we experienced last year and is nothing that out of the ordinary for New England for this time of year. As for a prediction for the rest of the summer, the observatory itself does not do official climatological predictions but from what I have read and am seeing, temperatures are slightly cooler but precipitation is either under or just slightly over what is normal for this time of year. But the season has just started so it is far too early to say anything conclusive.
Another thing to keep in mind is there is no daily way of measuring how an eruption affects a certain areas climate. It is similar to global warming in that you have to study the past to know what going on in the present.
Usually with volcanic eruptions, it takes a years worth of data to preliminarily say if any noticeable changes occurred. Then five year blocks are examined until 30 years after the fact to conclusively say whether any influence was experienced if at all. So as of now, we will just have to take a wait and see approach.
Cheers
Ryan Knapp
Senior Staff Meteorologist, KMWN
