Weather Geeks

Guest: Dr. Ashton Robinson CookWeather forecasting has made leaps and bounds in recent decades, and it’s hard to remember a time when we couldn’t get the latest forecast update with just a swipe of the finger on our phone.  But wouldn’t it be great if we could get an idea of what to expect MONTHS in advance? Well, you’re in luck because today we’re talking with Dr. Ashton Robinson Cook who has been a pioneer in understanding and improving seasonal forecasts, especially those for tornadoes.  We’ll find out how these forecasts are made and how events like La Nina and El Nino can affect them. 

Guest: Dr. Phil Klotzbach, Colorado State UniversityIf you are a purveyor of weather twitter, this man needs no introduction! Odds are you have seen at least one of his incredible and easily digestible hurricane stats during this past hurricane season as well. Today’s episode is with Dr. Phil Klotzbach from Colorado State University! We are going to discuss this monumental hurricane season and all of the records that it shattered. We will also talk about Dr. Klotzbach’s seasonal forecasts from CSU that he championed after the legendary Dr. William Gray’s passing. 

Guest: Mike Bettes2020 was, to put it lightly, an insane year.  Mother Nature didn’t care about a global pandemic either, as she lashed out during every single season.  From deadly tornadoes in the Spring, to raging wildfires in the summer, to a record number of tropical cyclones, to finally ending the year with a bonafide nor’easter!  Phew…  Well, I’ve got someone with me today who was in the studio talking about all of these events this year: The Weather Channel’s Mike Bettes!  We are going to go down the list to discuss the weather events that shaped our 2020. 

Guest: Steve Conney & Luke Stone, PowderchasersWhen you were a kid, you would fall asleep on a winter night dreaming of waking up to a snow day, though children that lived in the southern tier of the U.S. had a dream a little bit harder. You didn’t have to go to school and you could play in the snow all day! Well my guests today spend their days playing in the snow and have made a career out of it! Steve Conney and Luke Stone are members of the Powderchasers team that travels across the Rockies to forecast the biggest snowstorms to give you the freshest powder for your weekend ski trip! How will this upcoming La Nina winter impact their chases? Let’s find out...

Guest: Brian Cizek, Launch Weather Officer, 45th Weather SquadronWith new frontiers developing in spaceflight, it’s more important than ever to make sure we get the forecast right. There are many variables meteorologists have to monitor: cloud cover, precipitation chances, even cloud height and electric potential! To make sure every launch goes off without a hitch, you need a team of skilled, dedicated forecasters like those found at the 45th Weather Squadron. Today we’re happy to welcome Brian Cizek who serves as a launch weather officer. He’ll offer us an inside look at how these forecasts are made and why they need to be so accurate. Let’s get started in T minus 3...2...1...

Guest: Dr. Juliane Gross, RutgersLike searching for needles in a haystack, searching for meteorites on Earth is not an easy feat! How about searching for those meteorites while in the frigid wasteland of Antarctica? Well that is what my guest today did this past winter! Dr. Juliane Gross is an associate professor at Rutgers University and she studies the formation and evolution of the planets in our solar system. What do meteorites in the Antarctic have to do with her research? We are going to find out about that plus what living in the true frozen tundra is like!

Guest: Paul PisanoIntroduction: Ground transportation is something we all deal with on a daily basis, whether it’s in our cars, on a bus, or the subway. Navigating poor road conditions during inclement weather can be very treacherous, but new technologies and innovating thinking are working to keep people safe. Today we’re joined by Paul Pisano from the Road Weather Committee of the Transportation Research Board. Paul understands that ground transportation infrastructure is a vital asset that can’t be neglected.  With extreme weather conditions becoming more prevalent, we must ensure that the meteorological & transportation communities are working together to pave the way for smarter, safer, and more sustainable methods of travel.  

Guest: Mike NelsonIntroduction:Have you been struggling to understand climate change and what it means for you and your family?  What if I told you that in just 10 easy steps, YOU would be able to understand our Earth's changing climate?  Well today, we’re talking to meteorologist and author Mike Nelson who has written the book that answers those questions.  Mike Nelson has spent more than 40 years serving his local community as a broadcast meteorologist, and his work has helped revolutionize the industry.  We’ll discuss his amazing career and the journey that led to his writing this book.  Climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing our world today, and it’s important to have a messenger like Mike to help people understand how it works and how we can work together to reverse its effects.  

Guest: Mike EiltsIntroduction: When you hear the name, Mike Eilts, a few words may come to mind: storm chaser, atmospheric scientist, journal author, entrepreneur, pioneer of weather radar...and they’re all right! Today, we’re pleased to welcome Mike Eilts who currently serves as the Vice President of the Weather Business Unit at the Data Transmission Network, or DTN. His impressive career spans nearly 4 decades, and his innovative thinking has helped both government agencies and private companies to better serve their respective communities and clients.  We’ll discuss his early contributions to severe weather forecasting and verification, and we’ll also learn about his companies’ visions of using big data solutions to provide weather analytics and improved hazardous weather prediction to customers across the globe.  

Guest: Eric Jay Dolin, Ph.D.Introduction: Over the past several decades, the way we consume weather information and receive our latest forecasts has been revolutionized.  Millions of people can tune in to watch The Weather Channel during an impending tornado outbreak or approaching hurricane. With all this information so readily at our fingertips, it’s easy to forget how far we’ve come in our knowledge of weather and how it can shape our future. Today’s guest hasn’t forgotten the past. In fact, he loves to write about it… We’re excited to welcome best-selling author Eric Jay Dolin who has authored 14 books and more than 60 articles.  Today we’ll be discussing his latest book, A Furious Sky: The 500-Year History of America’s Hurricanes, and we’ll learn what his inspiration has been for his many acclaimed works. 

Guest: Dr. Craig Clements, SJSU Fire Weather Research LaboratoryIntroduction:We’ve seen a record number of acres of beautiful countryside go up in flames in 2020, and we’re not done yet. In recent years, many across the West have seen some of the deadliest & most destructive wildfires that our country has ever experienced. Whether they have been accelerated by climate change or extreme drought conditions, there is no denying that millions of lives have been changed forever as these millions of acres are scorched beyond repair. Today on the show, we are talking with someone who wants this trend to stop and wants to forecast the wildfires before they cause their destruction. His name is Dr. Craig Clements from the SJSU Fire Weather Research Lab in California and we are so excited to sit down with him today...

Guest: Margaret Crane, Child PsychologistIntroduction: I have had many Meteorologists come on this show and when I ask them how they got a passion for weather, a good number of them were scared of Mother Nature’s wrath at a young age. But that fear catapulted them into a passion for learning about the science behind what is happening in the sky. However, for some people, that fear doesn’t turn into passion and could even develop into a phobia. My guest today is Margaret Crane, who is a psychology PhD student specializing in anxiety disorders like storm phobias.

Guest:  Dr. Jamese Sims, NOAA Senior Physical ScientistArtificial Intelligence…or AI... When you hear that term, it’s likely that your mind is flooded with images from the latest Sci-Fi flick you’ve seen, or maybe you have visions of robots taking over the world!  Well fear not, because the AI we’re focusing on today revolves around its applications to meteorology and earth sciences. We’re sitting down with Dr. Jamese Sims, senior physical scientist with NOAA, who currently serves as the agency’s Special Assistant for Artificial Intelligence.  We’ll discuss the goals of NOAA’s AI strategy and how we can use machine learning to help improve everything from numerical forecasts to interpreting the chemistry of exoplanets!  And with all the opportunities AI has to offer, we’ll discuss how agencies are working together to access the latest technology and greatest minds to help us achieve our goals.

Guest: John LanierIntroduction: As geeks, we can do a lot to help out our environment by doing little things like using less water while brushing our teeth or using reusable bags instead of plastic bags while at the grocery store.  But as individuals, it is hard for us to make a large impact on the well-being of the entire globe!  That is where businesses and corporations can step in to be leaders in combating climate change!  The Ray C. Anderson Foundation is based on the values of creating a better world for tomorrow’s child through encouraging businesses to take action.  John Lanier is the Executive Director of RCAF and we are going to talk about his family ties to this wonderful foundation.

Guest:  Glenn “Hurricane” SchwartzIntroduction: If you were to ask a meteorologist who their top 3 superheroes are, odds are X-Men’s Storm would be on that list. Sure, that may be because of Halle Berry’s portrayal of her in the movies, but mainly because she has the ability to harness the power of the weather and use it at her will! What would YOU do if you could control the weather? Would you make it rain on the house of your high school bully everyday, or keep the sun shining bright while you are on vacation on the beach? My guest today is the legendary Glenn “Hurricane” Schwartz of NBC10 in Philadelphia who wrote a book about this fictional power and the consequences that can arise from it...

Guest:  Nelly Carreño, KUVNIntroduction: For those of you who are hurricane buffs like us, you know where they tend to form and where they track: they either are born from a tropical wave off Africa and cross through the Caribbean OR form within the Caribbean or Gulf of Mexico.  In these areas, there is a much higher population of people who speak only Spanish while the majority of the products that the National Hurricane Center puts out are in English.  This puts a lot of pressure on our bilingual meteorologists in the community, like my guest today, to communicate the science accurately and quickly.  I’m (virtually) sitting down with Nelly Carreño from Univision in Dallas Fort Worth to discuss these challenges and what changes can be made for the future.

Guest: Troy KimmelIntroduction: The state of Texas has many different microclimates, from the deserts in West Texas to the flood-prone grasslands of Houston to the raging heat in South Texas. How about the weather right in the middle of the state’s hill country? Austin, Texas is an eclectic city that is growing in popularity and population...but my guest today has been there for decades! Troy Kimmel is a well-known broadcast meteorologist for the city and has dedicated his life to enhancing Austin’s weather knowledge and natural disaster support.

Guest: Dr. Gavin Schmidt, Director of NASA GISSIntroduction:NASA scientists aren’t just focused on OUTER space. They’re also focused on the INNER workings of our atmosphere, oceans, and how each has evolved over time. As past discussions on our show have confirmed, one aspect of our world we know is changing is our climate. Today we’re joined by Dr. Gavin Schmidt, Director of NASA Goddard’s Institute for Space Studies. He’s been at the forefront of climate research, using models to see how our planet has changed over centuries and how it may keep changing for centuries to come. To model a more accurate picture of our planet’s future, we must take a look at the past and understand the impacts that both internal & external forces have had. What kinds of forces, you ask? Well, let’s find out...

Guest: Dr. Bill Bauman, FAAIntroduction: With more than 5 MILLION square miles of U.S. Domestic airspace and 24 MILLION square miles of U.S. Oceanic Airspace to cover, it’s easy to see how important weather observation and forecasting are to aviation. The FAA is in the midst of a massive modernization of its air traffic management systems, and you can bet, a major focus of this overhaul includes minimizing the impacts of day-to-day weather on flight operations. Today, we welcome the manager of the FAA’s Aviation Weather Division, Dr. Bill Bauman, whose industry experience spans nearly 4 decades! Please put your trays and seat backs in the upright position, and get ready for an inside look at the next generation of the FAA!

Guest: Dr. William McDowell, University of New HampshireEcology is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans like you and me, and their physical environment. It seeks to understand the vital connections between plants and animals and the world around them! So why am I giving you a lesson on ecology in this episode of Weather Geeks? Well, what if I told you that hurricanes have a large impact on our ecology?! That is what my guest Dr. William McDowell from the University of New Hampshire is here to teach us all about. Unlike with flash flooding and storm surge, we may not know the direct impacts a storm has on our ecosystem until we are many months or even years down the road!