Observatory Events
For the latest Observatory news, please visit our
Newsroom.
July
1-18 -
20th Anniversary Seek the Peak VIRTUAL Hike-a-thon Event!
As the largest annual fundraiser for the nonprofit Mount Washington Observatory, we need your support more than ever before!
We invite you to Seek YOUR Peak... in response to the COVID 19 pandemic we have had to shift gears and encourage participants to hike from anywhere in the world. Hiking not required! You may just want to support the Observatory as a registered donor or simply support another hiker.
•July 1-18, 2020
- Although we won’t hike together for the 20th anniversary of Seek the Peak we will celebrate your hike and support! Hike your mountain of choice and share your adventure with our Seek the Peak Facebook Group or email details to events@mountwashington.org so we can share with the Seek the Peak community.
We need your help to create a set of celebratory Seek the Peak Story/Prayer Flags* in honor of this amazing event over the years. There will be a strand for every year. Past participants can send in their 8.5"x11" flag as soon as the would like. STP 2020 participants can do their hike of choice between July 1-18, 2020 and send their information in on a commemorative 8.5"x 11" flag made on cloth (or material of choice). Please include name, year or years (you can send one for every year if you would like), summit and and design of choice. You can use our template (available here), a STP or MWO logo as a graphic or design whatever you would like.
*We will tie every hiker flag together and we will fly the commemorative STP prayer flag from the summit of Mount Washington in celebration of all of our participants who hiked near and far! Date TBD
•July 17-18, 2020
- The Great Gear Giveaway will go on! We will plan to do a Facebook Live prize drawing event - stay tuned for details.
- We are cautiously optimistic that we might be able to offer some type of STP Vendor Expo and opportunity for prize pick-up at the Weather Discovery Center in North Conway. Stay tuned for information as we learn more about the states re-opening guidelines.
•STP Prayer Flag - Takes Flight - Date TBD
- Follow us on Facebook Live as we roll out the 20th anniversary commemorative STP Prayer Flag off the summit tower to thank all of our STP participants for their incredible support over the years.
Registrants are asked to raise a minimum of $300 as part of their participation; in turn they are awarded with fabulous prizes and more!
Be in the first 500 to raise $200 and earn an exclusive Cotopaxi - Eastern Mountain Sports STP backpack.
28 -
Science in the Mountains Lecture Series
Mount Washington Observatory: 87 Years of Observation, People & Stories
Nate Iannuccillo: MWO Weather Observer/Education Specialists; Brian Fitzgerald: MWO Director of Science & Education
Since re-occupying the summit in 1932, weather observers atop Mount Washington have recorded the weather around the clock, amassing one of North America’s longest-running climate records. Along the way, observers have recorded world record wind speeds, adopted cats, supported rescues and cooked Thanksgiving turkeys for co-workers and visitors. Join MWO staff as they share how life and work at 6,288 feet have changed and what remains the same at this unique and extreme weather outpost.
Register Here
August
11 -
Science in the Mountains Lecture Series
Thunderstorms, Lightning & Lightning Safety
Nicole Tallman & Nate Iannuccillo: MWO Weather Observer/Education Specialists; John Jensenius, Meteorologist, Lightning Safety Specialist, National Lightning Safety Council
Summer is a fantastic time to enjoy the outdoors- but when those puffy clouds start to grow and thunder roars, it’s time to get to a safe place. In this two-part program we’ll learn about how blue skies can give way to towering supercell thunderstorms capable of producing hail, damaging winds, flash floods and spectacular lightning. Then John Jensenius, Meteorologist and Lightning Safety Specialist with the National Lightning Safety Council, will cut through all of the folklore and misconceptions to help you and those in your care stay safe during thunderstorms.
Register Here: Check back soon for program link.
25 - Science in the Mountains Lecture Series
The Legacy of Hurricane Irene
Ryan Knapp: Sr. Staff Meteorologist/Night Observer MWO; Mary Stampone, PhD: Associate Professor, New Hampshire State Climatologist, University of New Hampshire; David Hollinger, PhD: Director USDA Northeast Climate Hub; Brian Fitzgerald (moderator), Director of Science & Education MWO
Nine years have passed since the landfall of Hurricane Irene in the Northeast, but the wide and devastating impacts seen in the region are still fresh in our minds. Join MWO Sr. Meteorologist Ryan Knapp, State Climatologist & UNH Associate Professor Mary Stampone and Physiologist and Director of the USDA’s Northeast Climate Hub David Hollinger to engage in a discussion about the meteorological, climatological and economic impacts of Hurricane Irene, and what the Northeast will expect in the future.
Register Here: Check back soon for program link.
September
15 - Science in the Mountains Lecture Series
Bird Migration: Fun Facts and Shameless Speculations
Pamela D. Hunt, PhD, Avian Conservation Biologist, NH Audubon
Why do birds migrate? How do they know where they’re going? How does weather affect migration paths? The phenomenon of bird migration has fascinated people for millennia, and in this program the answers are finally revealed! Pam Hunt of NH Audobon will provide an overview of the nuts and bolts of bird migration, including how scientists study it and what role weather and climate play. We’ll also discuss examples of migration routes of some familiar (and unfamiliar) species and touch on the conservation issues facing migratory birds.
Register Here: Check back soon for program link.