what a tease!

This morning, Accuweather reported that it would RAIN and be in the low 50s on Monday. Now, it is saying: Partly sunny. Winds from the N at 8 mph. High: 65° F

The local TV station in New Hampshire, http://www.wmur.com, has an "Ask your Meteorologist" column. Guess what the very first FAQ is???

QUESTION: I've heard people say that New Hampshire is one of the most difficult places to forecast the weather. Why is that?

ANSWER: You're right, it IS very difficult for several reasons.
1. New Hampshire is a tall state, meaning that the weather can be very different between its northern and southern zones. Temperature differences of 40 degrees or more are often seen from top to bottom.
2. New Hampshire's hilly terrain and mountains actually change the weather! The weather charts we use operate on a larger scale and often don't pick up on these changes. Mountains can create clouds or dissipate them. The same can be said about rain and snow, as well. This is because as air rushes up a mountainside, it cools and condenses moisture and can form clouds and precipitation if there is enough moisture in the air. Likewise, as air rushes down a hill, it warms and dries. Also, as you go higher in altitude, often times (but not always) the temperature is colder.
3. The ocean. Since New Hampshire also has the Atlantic Ocean nearby, that ALSO changes the weather. Oceans take longer to warm up than the air, yet once they do heat up, they hold that warmth longer. Therefore, oceans are often cooler than the air in the summer (sometimes creating a seabreeze if the winds are right) and warmer than the air in the winter (often changing snow to rain).
Add all these factors up, and you get all kinds of weather -- weather that can often be very hard to predict because our weather charts and computer models can't account for what these variables will do.
Thanks for the question!
-Josh Judge, meteorologist