The First Storm of Winter on Mauna Kea

It is currently snowing on the summit. Not just a dusting this time, but a real blanket of white on the mountain. Poliʻahu has returned to the summit. The forecast is calling for up to three inches of white before tomorrow morning.

We just got word that the Keck summit crew is abandoning the summit. They are leaving before the conditions get worse.

A photo from a UKIRT webcam is below. I would post one from our Keck cameras, but the camera windows are covered with blown snow and ice. I have a new all-weather webcam, a full pan-tilt-zoom unit to install, but it is still sitting in a box at the summit. Personally I am not planning being up until Wednesday, I wonder if the snow will still be there, fresh snow on the mountain is always pretty.

Snow on Mauna Kea
The first winter storm on Mauna Kea for the 2014-2015 season blankets the summit in white.

Author: Andrew

An electrical engineer, amateur astronomer, and diver, living and working on the island of Hawaiʻi.

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