MBCL

The Mount Baker Climate Laboratory (MBCL)

Welcome to the Mount Baker Climate Laboratory! You’ve found one of our installations! These installations are strategic arrays of temperature sensors designed to help us better understand the weather and snow hyrdology of this important aspect of the Pacific Northwest climate system.

One of our biggest challenges in this project has been to deploy and maintain a record from the Crater and Summit locations. These areas are dynamic landscapes, experiencing a lot of erosion and receiving a lot of visitors. We rely on our mountain community to help maintain these measurements. We request that you do not disturb these installation if they seem secure. If you encounter one of our installations loose or disturbed, please do one of the following:

  1. Resecure it (sensor buried 3 cm deep), take a picture, email us with a short report of what you discovered and what was done.
OR
  1. Collect and return installation to us. Please take any appropriate pictures to document what you discovered.

Contact Michael Town of Earth and Space Research here.

Mount Baker Summit Installation

This installation is possibly the most important measurement of our array. When snow free, the summit soil temperature provides a rare ground truth to forecast and reanalysis for mid-latitude alpine environments. Since its inception, we’ve only recovered this sensor one time! We need your help to improve this return rate. As stated above, we are fighting two factors here - erosion and visitors.

Erosion at the Summit

We can’t do much to prevent the impacts of erosion up here. However, if you do find our Summit installation loose or otherwise insecure, please resecure it with the instructions below. If that is infeasible, please collect the installation and return to us.

Visitors to the Summit

The Mount Baker Summit receives a lot of visitors. Often our community will find human detritus on the mountain and scrupulously bring it down the mountain. This installation is not detritus! Please communicate with your party and others on the mountain what this installation is, and encourage folks to leave the installation if it seems secure.

Summit sensor installation instructions

Away from trafficked paths, hammer in the four pitons such that the placard is held tight against the soil surface. Bury the sensor 3 cm beneath the soil surface next to the piton to the upper left as you read the placard. Attach the thin radio wire from the sensor housing to the piton. Take a picture and share with us. Thank you!

Mount Baker Crater Rim Installation

This installation is possibly the most difficult measurement of our array. When snow free, the crater soil temperature provides a rare ground truth for this dynamic microclimate of the Mount Baker climate system. Since its inception, we’ve never recovered this sensor. It is unlikely that you will encounter this sensor. If you do, please leave it in place if it is secure. If it is not secure, Do not resecure it. Please collect and return to us! Thank you!

Erosion at the Crater rim

We can’t do much to prevent the impacts of erosion up here. This location is constantly changing. It is a relatively dangerous to the rest of the high mountain environement that one may have experienced in summiting Mount Baker. Please do not search out this installation

Visitors

We do not recommend trying to find this site. Most visitors will walk right by. If you happen to find this site, please do not disturb the installation unless it already happens to be loose. Then retrieve it and bring to us. Thank you!

Thank you!

Thanks so much for your support. This citizen science project would not exist without the interest and support of you and folks like you. Find more out about the MBCL, how to support us or get involved, here.