When Will Mt. Chipotle Melt?

A few days ago, there was an interesting article in the Daily Progress about the 40 foot pile of snow in the Barracks shopping center parking lot outside oIt may not be the most rigorous environmental study ever, but it’s certainly among the more entertaining. A group of graduate students at the University of Virginia has established the Mount Chipotle National Research Observatory:

The tongue-in-cheek observatory was created to perpetuate the study of that big pile of snow near the Chipotle restaurant in the Barracks Road Shopping Center parking lot.

“It’s just an inside joke that apparently has gotten out of hand,” said Luke Cole, a graduate student and one of the Mount Chipotle NRO ringleaders.

The effort has included summit ascents, monitoring and its own blog (mountchipotle.blogspot.com), which chronicles the observatory’s “science” and “scandal.”

Most interesting, though, was a little blurb about when the mountain will melt away:

Another of the research observatory’s primary purposes is to fuel the informal betting pool that has morphed into a fundraiser for the environmental science department’s graduate student association.

For $10, a case of beer or a bottle wine, students can pick the day that they think the pile will be gone. Get it right and win $30, plus some gift certificates that Chipotle Mexican Grill kicked in, said David Seekell, another of the students involved.

When do you think Mt. Chipotle will be gone? We're guessing April 28th.

Related:
Mount Chipotle Blog