Temperatures dropped rapidly and wind speeds picked up across the Northeast early Saturday, but neither region could compete with frigid conditions atop Mount Washington in New Hampshire.
At 6,288 feet, it is the highest peak in the Northeast and is known for having the worst weather in the world.
A new record for the coldest wind ever recorded, minus 108 degrees Fahrenheit, was set at Mount Washington in New Hampshire, the region’s highest peak, on Friday. The previous record was minus 103 degrees. Temperatures at the summit dropped as low as minus 47 degrees in the early hours of Saturday, close to the previous record from 1934.
By comparison, the coldest it reached on Thursday was minus 5 degrees. Average wind speed is 55 mph and peak gust is 95 mph
Those who tune into the Mount Washington Observatory tower camera thick layers of snow can be seen, with the structures on top being blown away by the wind.
The highest temperature is expected to rise on Saturday morning and will drop to around minus 15 degrees by sunset on Saturday. But winds will be stronger than storms and fog will return on Sunday, with individual sleet expected.
Ventured out into the mountains to monitor the system on Friday, Francis Tarasiewicz, a staff meteorologist at the Mount Washington Observatory, encountered winds that sounded like a roaring freight train. He said: “There were pieces of ice flying around, lots of crouching and dodging. “I have a tiny area of skin, about a millimeter wide, and it feels like a bee sting.”
