Mount Washington records snowiest June in 91 years of record-keeping. Cold air and a powerful low-pressure system brought record snow to the highest peak in the northeastern U.S. late last week, and more could be on the way.
The official start of summer is fast approaching, but the highest point in the northeastern USA recently set a record for snowfall in June.
Mount Washington, located in northern New Hampshire, is the highest peak in the northeastern USA, at 1917 meters. During the winter months, it is home to some of the most extreme weather conditions in the Northeast.
Last February, temperatures at the top of the mountain plummeted to -44 degrees, as the polar vortex plunged the States into a powerful cold snap.
Record snowfall for a month of June
However, this June 2023 is also breaking records. As of Tuesday June 13, the mountains have recorded 21 cm of snow so far this month. This is the maximum observed in June since record-keeping began at the observatory in 1932.
According to weather observations, the snowiest day of the month so far was June 7, when 10.5 cm of snow fell. In addition, temperatures only reached 1 degree that day, some 15 degrees below average for the date.
Winter weather is still quite common at this time of year at the top of the mountain. In fact, snow falls regularly on the mountain during the month of June.
However, although snow is common during the first half of the month, totals are usually less than 5 cm. The average snowfall for the whole month of June is 3 cm.
Weather context
A vast and powerful low-pressure area brought moisture and an abnormally cold air mass to New England, explaining the exceptional snowfall.
On Monday, temperatures reached 10 degrees, melting most of the snow.
With another invasion of cold air approaching in the coming days, we could see the snow total increase even further.
According to the observatory, the last snowfalls of the season usually occur in the first half of June.
