Did the Cat Win the Contest?

Meteorologists and observers atop Mount Washington in New Hampshire held a little friendly competition Thursday and decided to include the mountain's cat, Marty. https://www.instagram.com/p/BhK4sq9B9J-/?taken-by=mwobs Courtesy MWOBS on Instagram. Follow them here! In a post on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook Wednesday night, the observatory let the social world know about the friendly weather forecast competition. What was the competition, you say? Estimating the highest wind at the peak of Mt. Washington. We honestly don't know who guessed what, based on the initials in the picture above. However we do recognize one name: Marty. https://www.facebook.com/MWObs/photos/a.115190884684.99895.11654109684/10155311679679685/?type=3&theater Courtesy the Mt. Washington Observatory Facebook page. Give them a like here! While meteorologists and observers make notes of the ongoing weather and forecast, Marty can usually be found napping on laptops or strolling around the facility. As the observatory's pet contributor, Marty is the highest cat in New England. It makes sense, since cats like to be up nice and high and look down on everything. Mount Washington sits at 6,288 feet and is New England's highest peak. Now that you know more about Marty, let's get back to who won the contest. https://twitter.com/MWObs/status/981915682668457986 Courtesy MWObs on Twitter. Follow them by clicking/tapping here! The official top wind gust on Thursday was....*drumroll*

120 MPH

So technically, no one won! Since the contest was 'closest without going over' all forecasts were above 120 miles per hour. We think it says 'Vol' on the bottom of the sticky note that had forecast 121 mph which would be the natural winner. But alas, the folks atop Mt. Washington will have to have another contest soon. The good news is that Marty the cat did not lose! (By the way, the folks at Mt. Washington took the average of all the guesses and gave that number to Marty) One of the weather observers wrote about the contest and results. You can read that here. Mount Washington's peak is a notoriously windy place. It sits at just the right location where it's in the middle latitudes, the highest peak around, and close enough to the Atlantic Ocean where storm systems often strengthen rapidly. The reason it was so windy Thursday was due to a strong low pressure system over the Canadian Maritimes. It was the same low pressure area that helped bring heavy snow to the Upper Midwest Tuesday and then rain/snow showers across the East Wednesday. All-time, Mt. Washington's highest observed wind happened during the month of April, but way back in 1934. The top registered wind was 231 miles per hour! You can read more about that event here! For WeatherNation, Meteorologist Steve Glazier