The effects of a winter 'bomb-cyclone' could produce a minus-100-degree wind chill in one part of New Hampshire

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January 6, 2018 3:02 AM

The frigid winter storm has already produced miserable weather conditions from the Midwest to the Northeast US.

An Arctic air mass enveloping parts of the Northeast US on Friday sent temperatures below zero in some areas.
The frigid weather is the byproduct of a bomb cyclone and polar vortex that slammed the East Coast for much of the week.
The storm left some vehicles encased in ice on roads in Boston, blanketed New York landmarks in snow, and prompted airport closures and flight delays for a time.

The aftermath of a frigid "bomb cyclone" and polar vortex left much of the northeastern US frigid on Friday night.

Wind chills in one part of New Hampshire were forecast to hit negative 100 degrees, according to forecasters. New York Times reporters who were sent to Mount Washington in that state said the wind "steals your breath and freezes your eyelashes."

"You can’t blink. The cold stabs your face and numbs your earlobes to rubber," they wrote in a revealing story published Friday.

Meteorologist Mike Carmon, who is stationed at the Mount Washington Observatory, told the The Times that the top of the mountain would likely be the coldest spot in the continental US on Friday night. Carmon called the top of Mount Washington, which sits nearly 6,300 feet above sea level, "one of the most extreme places on Earth."

Meteorologists on Carmon's team have to go outside to check their weather instruments and record various metrics like wind speed and temperature every hour. The trek takes some preparation, The Times reported. The forecasters dress in five layers of clothing, and put on ski masks and goggles.

But it's not enough. As the Times' Jess Bidgood, Katherine Q. Seelye, and Jack Healy describe it:

"Even within a few minutes of standing outside at 3,900 feet — two-thirds of the way up — toes and fingers, including those wrapped in multiple layers of clothing, can quickly go numb. The wind turns snowflakes into projectiles that feel as if they are piercing any skin that is exposed."

The northeast storm had already caused blizzards and flooding throughout the region this week, but the lingering effects gripped the East Coast on Friday. Cars in downtown Boston were frozen in ice, and New York City landmarks were blanketed in snow.

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