Year Without A Summer
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Hi I'm Dave Thurlow for the Mount Washington Observatory and this is the Weather Notebook. The summer of 1816, known in New England as the Year Without a Summer, was more than just a momentary dip in temperature. The impact of that summer long ago, is still felt today.

The summer of 1816, despite its legend, was only a slightly below normal summer in terms of temperature, but was made legendary by three unusual and damaging cold snaps of about 5 days each. One, in June, was the most severe, killing the vegetable crop across New England. And even though summer weather returned, some farmers, were ruined.

The cause of the outbreaks of cold weather in New England and other parts of the world was weakened sunlight following the accumulation in the atmosphere of ash from several South Pacific volcanic eruptions over the preceding five years. The virtual destruction of a year's harvest caused the first mass migration westward out of New England, and a shift of farming away from the east. You might say that we're still feeling the effects today. Had there been no reason for European settlers to head west at that time, the nation's distribution of farmland and manufacturing, and its balance of power, might have turned out much differently. You could say that our lives today are, in some ways, the product of a 5-day cold snap 184 years ago. Ultimately, all climactic irregularities affect human history and play themselves out in the economy.

Two books: Braving the Elements by Weather Notebook writer David Laskin, and New England Weather Journal by David Ludlum, tell more about the year without a summer.

The Weather Notebook is made possible by a grant from the National Science Foundation. Support also comes from Subaru, the Beauty of All-Wheel Drive.