Surfing on Mount Washington? Rare ice waves form on summit.
NORTH CONWAY, N.H. - It was surf's up for weather observers on Mount Washington this week.
The Mount Washington Observatory shared photos of staff members hanging ten on "rime ice" formations atop New England's highest peak.
"The rime ice wave on the top of our tower hasn't formed in nearly two years, so it is rare to see it as big as it is in these photos," the Observatory posted to Facebook.
What is rime ice?
Weather observer Francis Tarasiewicz told WBZ-TV that the summit was seeing nine inches per hour of ice accumulation. He explained that rime ice forms when supercooled water droplets freeze as they make contact with a surface.
"They freeze and form a nice, feathery crystal if the temperature is cold enough," he said. "Those crystals kind of build on each other into the wind."
Rime ice is a common phenomenon on Mount Washington, since the summit is in the clouds and the average temperature is below freezing. Weather observers are constantly chipping away ice that collects on their outdoor instruments. In October, rime ice formed what looked like a "frozen tornado" atop the mountain.
Harsh conditions on Mount Washington
While the rime ice made for fun pictures, the observatory doesn't want hikers attempting any copycat photoshoots.
"Mountain weather is subject to rapid changes and extreme cold, so never dress like the observers in these photos when on the summit in the winter," the observatory posted.
It will be especially chilly on the mountain this weekend, with wind chills falling to 55 degrees below zero Friday night, according to the higher summits forecast.
