Mount Washington Records Peak Wind Gust Of 157 MPH

The blustery weather here in Maine over the weekend was nothing in comparison to the blasts of air atop the highest peak in the northeast.

The Mount Washington Observatory in New Hampshire saw some intense wind gusts over the weekend. According to a post on Twitter, Weather Observers recorded a peak gust of 157 MPH. For comparison, the gust was equivalent to a category 5 hurricane; as according to the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

Winds at the summit were sustained Sunday at 115, gusting to 132 MPH. The temp was -11. We don't know what that would equate to as a windchill, but we're guessing approximately wicked cold. In actuality, it would be in the neighborhood of 40 below.

A visual comparison can be made to the 115 MPH sustained winds. Back in 2017, the Observatory Facebook page shared a video of observer Tom Padham barely able to stay on his feet in the extreme conditions at the summit. The video was recorded during a snow storm that blew over the summit producing 105 MPH wind gusts. The strong winds dipped the windchill to near 40 below.

While a wind gust of 157 MPH is impressive, it dwarfs in comparison to the maximum wind gust recorded on the summit of Mount Washington. Back on April 12, 1934, the observatory recorded winds at 231 MPH. For 62 years that record stood as the fastest wind gust recorded on earth. In1996 the record was broken on Barrow Island, Australia. The unmanned weather station recorded a new record of 253 MPH, which still stands to this day.