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What is it about Mount Washington that makes its weather so violently dynamic?
by bmitc 4y ago
What is it about Mount Washington that makes its weather so violently dynamic?
- hammock 4y agoExposure. There are 75mph+ winds at the top pretty much constantly and it’s the highest point around especially facing northwest
- vanilla_nut 4y agoApparently three major air streams pass right over the northeast, and it's the highest point (by a fair margin) east of the Mississippi. So it essentially gets a direct "hit" of speedy air that's been uninterrupted for thousands of miles, from multiple angles.
- jcranmer 4y ago> highest point (by a fair margin) east of the Mississippi. That's Mount Mitchell--6684 ft versus Washington's 6288 ft. Washington is slightly more prominent than Mitchell (6148 versus 6089).
- vanilla_nut 4y agoSorry, my mistake! Thank you for correcting this.
- bandrade 4y agoMt Mitchell in North Carolina is the highest peak east of the Mississippi. Mt. Washington is the most prominent.
- decohen 4y agoMount Washington sits at the end of a long, wide east-west running valley, in an area with predominantly western winds. This gives the wind an unusually long "fetch" to build strength over. That, combined with the orographic lift as the air flows over the mountain, leads to unusually strong winds.