WeatherBrains Episode 932 is now online (November 27th, 2023). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Tonight’s first WeatherBrain is the suggestion of listener Edward Shaw and is a previous alumni of the show.  He’s a professor in the Department of Geography at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg.  He is a native of Roanoke Virginia and studied environmental science as an undergraduate before completing his graduate work through the Department of Geosciences at Mississippi State. Connections to Virginia Tech spread through his family as five other family members completed either undergraduate or graduate degrees at the university. Before joining the Department of Geography’s new meteorology degree program, Dave spent several years teaching a dual-enrollment Applied Meteorology course for accelerated high school students and undergraduates through Virginia Tech’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Dave Carroll, welcome to the show.

Our second Guest WeatherBrain is an associate professor of geography and meteorology at Ball State University in Muncie.  He received his meteorology degree with honors from Penn State and an advanced degree in geography from Syracuse University.  David Call, welcome to the show.

Also stopping by as our Guest Panelist is Stephanie Zick, an assistant professor and core faculty member for Virginia Tech’s B. S. meteorology program.  She’s a tropical weather expert as well as numerical weather prediction and model forecast verification expert who joined Virginia Tech University in 2016.  Thanks for joining us!

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• Bringing the community into a University meteorology program (06:45)
• Superstorm of Thanksgiving 1950 (09:30)
• Ball State storm chasing program (24:25)
• Deeper look at geography program at Virginia Tech (50:00)
• AMS/NWA chapters (01:07:30)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:47:50)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:49:40)
• National Weather Round-Up
• E-Mail Segment (No segment this week)
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 932:

“Superstorm 1950: The Greatest Simultaneous Blizzard, Ice Storm, Windstorm, and Cold Outbreak of the Twentieth Century” by David A Call

Picks of the Week:

David Call – “Buckeye Blizzard: Ohio and the 1950 Thanksgiving storm” by Roger Pickenpaugh

David Call – “White Hurricane: A Great Lakes November Gale and America’s Deadliest Maritime Disaster” by David G Brown

James Aydelott – Early season NW Oklahoma snow preliminary totals

Jen Narramore – Out

Rick Smith – Out

Neil Jacobs – Out

Troy Kimmel – The Tornado Project Online

Kim Klockow-McClain – Out

Bill Murray – Foghorn

James Spann – Fallstreak hole over Alabama photos on X

James Spann – Chris Elick on X announcement about his research on perceptions of weather-based pain forecasts

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, Dr. Neil Jacobs, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.

WeatherBrains Episode 931 is now online (November 20th, 2023). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Tonight will be a Thanksgiving week homegrown show with the regular panelists.

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• Weather podcast fundraiser/telethon benefitting the Red Cross (06:00)
• Severe weather across southern Mississippi (24:00)
• NWS Chat 2.0 (28:00)
• Disconnect between forecasters and general public during active weather events (46:15)
• Outdated concept of local TV market DMAs (55:45)
• Looking ahead to future planned WeatherBrains guests (58:00)
• AI and the future of weather forecasting (01:30:00)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (No segment this week)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:20:17)
• National Weather Round-Up (01:21:50)
• E-Mail Segment
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 931:

National Storm Chaser Summit 2024

Weather Pods Disaster Relief Telethon supporting the American Red Cross Part 1

Weather Pods Disaster Relief Telethon supporting the American Red Cross Part 2

Picks of the Week:

James Aydelott – Out

Jen Narramore – The Tornado Project

Rick Smith – IDSS Forecast Points

Neil Jacobs – Out

Troy Kimmel – Out

Kim Klockow-McClain – Out

Bill Murray – Foghorn

James Spann – Understanding GraphCast, Google’s AI weather forecasting tool

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, Dr. Neil Jacobs, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.

WeatherBrains Episode 930 is now online (November 13th, 2023). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Tonight we will be discussing the Weather Pods Disaster Relief Telethon being held this Saturday, November 18th benefitting the American Red Cross.

Tonight’s Guest WeatherBrain is a former broadcast meteorologist for Birmingham’s CBS 42 and now works in higher education at Auburn University.  It’s an honor to have you on the show tonight.  Ashley Gann, welcome to WeatherBrains.

Also stopping by as Guest Panelist is the proprietor of the Chaser Chat weather podcast.  Gabe Harber, welcome to the show.

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• Weather Pods Disaster Relief Telethon (07:00)
• March 2019 tornado outbreak analysis (45:00)
• Looking back at April 27, 2011 (49:00)
• International Association of Emergency Managers event discussion (01:18:30)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:35:00)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:37:02)
• National Weather Round-Up (01:42:45)
• E-Mail Segment (01:40:00)
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 930:

Weather Pods Disaster Relief Telethon

Chaser Chat Podcast on X

Ashley Gann on X

Picks of the Week:

Ashley Gann – 1983 Iron Bowl receives over 9 inches of rain

James Aydelott – Michael Lowry on X: Total Time in NHC Forecast Cones in 2023

Jen Narramore – Iowa Helicopter survey of Stratford Iowa tornado

Rick Smith – Out

Neil Jacobs – Full Committee Markup of H.R. 6093

Troy Kimmel – Foghorn

Kim Klockow-McClain – NOAA forecasts quicker, stronger peak of solar activity

Bill Murray – Weather Channel Morning Brief Newsletter

James Spann – Professor Aims to Improve Emergency Alerts for Deaf Community

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, Dr. Neil Jacobs, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.

WeatherBrains Episode 929 is now online (November 6th, 2023). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Tonight’s Guest WeatherBrain needs no introduction.  He grew up in Central Florida.  He’s a TV meteorologist and hurricane specialist.  He was previously the chief meteorologist for WTVJ-TV in Miami where he became well-known for his excellent coverage of 1992’s Hurricane Andrew, and subequently became Director of Meteorology for WFOR-TV, and a hurricane analyst for CBS News in New York City.  He currently works for Fox Weather in NYC.  Bryan Norcross, it’s an honor to have you on the show tonight.

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• Looking back at 1969’s Hurricane Camille (09:00)
• Looking back at 1965’s Hurricane Betsy (26:30)
• Hurricane Otis vs Andrew (30:00)
• Hurricane behavior comparisons between the 70s/80s and today (53:00)
• Lack of media coverage with Otis (01:12:00)
• Future of Saffir-Simpson Scale (01:26:30)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:34:25)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:32:50)
• National Weather Round-Up (01:
• E-Mail Segment (01:
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 929:

Bryan Norcross – Hurricane Specialist and Director of Meteorology

Bryan Norcross on X

“My Hurricane Andrew Story” by Bryan Norcross

Picks of the Week:

Bryan Norcross – Lightning Bolt hits water tower in Homestead, FL week after Hurricane Andrew

James Aydelott – Alex Spahn on X: Ada, OK supercell photo

Jen Narramore – Jersey tornado believed to be most powerful recorded in British Isles for nearly 70 years

Rick Smith – Angel Enrique on X: Montana aurora photo

Neil Jacobs – Out

Troy Kimmel – IAEM Annual Conference 2023

Kim Klockow-McClain – Out

Bill Murray – Foghorn

James Spann – Professor Aims to Improve Emergency Alerts for Deaf Community

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, Dr. Neil Jacobs, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.

WeatherBrains Episode 928 is now online (October 30th, 2023). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Tonight’s show is the idea of friend of the podcast Jeremy Bower.  Tonight’s Guest Panelist has appeared on several previous WeatherBrains episodes and is an accomplished photographer.  He won 2nd place in the 2022 AMS Weatherband Photo Contest.  He owns JRB Storm Photography and is employed by the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources.  Jeremy Bower, welcome back.

Tonight’s Guest WeatherBrain is the Warning Coordination Meteorologist at the NWS Omaha since 1988.  He worked directly under the legendary Dr. Ted Fujita as a graduate student at the University of Chicago.  He’s celebrating his upcoming retirement at the end of this month.  Brian Smith, welcome to WeatherBrains.

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• Harry Volkman/Origin of broadcasting tornado warnings on television (15:00)
• Palm Sunday 1965 Crystal Lake tornado (20:30)
• April 21, 1967 Belvedere tornado (21:00)
• Meeting Dr. Fujita (24:30)
• The Fujita Scale (41:00)
• Fujita Scale “Unknown Category” (52:00)
• History of SKYWARN (01:06:30)
• Unique/unusual tornado damage (01:30:25)
•  Fast-moving vs slow-moving tornado damage paths (01:34:30)
• Hurricane Otis and its rapid intensification (01:46:10)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:39:45)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:42:20)
• National Weather Round-Up (01:45:35)
• E-Mail Segment (01:43:50)
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 928:

Capturing the Lightning: Weather Photography Tips

JRB Storm Photography

JRB Storm Photography on Flickr

Picks of the Week:

Brian Smith – NOAA Damage Assessment Toolkit Viewer

Jeremy Bower – Ancient Air Theatre on YouTube

James Aydelott – Snickers QG Omega Equation photo on X

James Aydelott – Paraguay Tornado on X

Jen Narramore – 1974 Super Outbreak Project Promo

Rick Smith – National Weather Service Winter Storm Warning for Heavy Snow Criteria

Neil Jacobs – Lucas, Lofgren and Science Committee Members Introduce Weather Act Reauthorization to Advance National Weather Forecasting

Troy Kimmel – NWS Service Change Notices

Kim Klockow-McClain – Foghorn

Bill Murray – November 1-2, 1966 Major Snowstorm/Story from NWS Nashville

James Spann – Photos from Acapulco/Hurricane Otis Aftermath

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, Dr. Neil Jacobs, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.

WeatherBrains Episode 927 is now online (October 23th, 2023). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Tonight’s Guest WeatherBrain served as the WCM at the NWS Seattle from 1977 until 2018, specializing in decision support and enhancing forecast systems.  He’s remained active in emergency preparedness in retirement and has served on various committees.  He teaches at the National Disaster Preparedness Training Center and provides weather support for major events.  He graduated from Oregon State University in Atmospheric Science.  Ted Buehner, welcome!

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• Origins of the NWS WCM program (11:30)
• Notable floods in Pacific NW (23:30)
• Pacific NW notable tornadoes (32:30)
• Tsunami science/vulnerability (35:00)
• Misnomer of the Pacific NW’s wet weather (55:30)
• Future of the NWS (01:20:00)
• NOAA Winter Outlook (01:42:35)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:24:55)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:27:08)
• National Weather Round-Up (01:37:45)
• E-Mail Segment (01:28:45)
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 927:

Tornado Ted on X

Partners in Emergency Preparedness

Picks of the Week:

Ted Buehner – NOAA Weather Radio

James Aydelott – Out

Jen Narramore – Ten years after Moore tornado killed her son, Danni Legg is still fighting for shelters in schools

Rick Smith – Out

Neil Jacobs – What is Astronomical Twilight?

Troy Kimmel – Foghorn

Kim Klockow-McClain – Dennis Mileti/START

Bill Murray – North Sound Weather Minute Podcast

James Spann – “Chemtrail” on the loose… – TikTok

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, Dr. Neil Jacobs, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.

WeatherBrains Episode 926 is now online (October 16th, 2023). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Tonight’s Guest WeatherBrain is a long time weather warrior and legend in the meteorology field who is retiring from television. For two decades, he worked as chief meteorologist for WKRG-TV in Mobile, AL. Born in New York, Sealls holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Cornell University and Florida State, respectively. He worked at television stations in Georgia, Wisconsin, and Illinois before settling in Mobile in 1999.  Alan Sealls, it’s an honor to have you on the show tonight.

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• What does WKRG stand for?  (25:15)
• Extreme events covered by Alan Sealls in each state (29:00)
• What went right and what went wrong in 2020’s Hurricane Sally (34:30)
• Complexity of communicating weather information today (38:30)
• Fighting disinformation online (47:20)
• Where is TV meteorology headed?  (01:01:00)
• Mental health in broadcast meteorology (01:23:15)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (No segment this week)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:26:40)
• National Weather Round-Up (01:27:55)
• E-Mail Segment
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 926:

Alan Sealls Author Website

Alan Sealls on X

Picks of the Week:

Alan Sealls – Bad Words for Weathercasters

James Aydelott – Adrean Mendoza on X: Costco “shozo” photo

Jen Narramore – Mid-Atlantic Severe Weather Conference

Rick Smith – NWS Baltimore-Washington on X: Ken Graham photo

Neil Jacobs – Out

Troy Kimmel – Aviation Weather Center GFA: Observations

Kim Klockow-McClain – Out

Bill Murray – Foghorn

James Spann – How Credible Is Weather Information Online Or In Social Media?

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, Dr. Neil Jacobs, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.

WeatherBrains Episode 925 is now online (October 9th, 2023). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Tonight’s Guest WeatherBrain reports the weather on Good Morning Kansas and Good Morning KAKEland.  He attended the University of Kansas.  Before joining KAKE-TV in 2013, he worked across Indiana and Kansas with a lot of forecasting experience with lake effect snow and tornadoes.  He holds a CBM from the AMS and an NWA seal-holder.   Frank Waugh, welcome to the show tonight.

Also joining the show tonight is WAKE-TV Multimedia Producer Lester Rowe.  He’s also a filmmaker and has participated in numerous film festivals.

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• June 10th 1958 “Backwards tornado”
• Difference between continuous wave and today’s Doppler radar (16:00)
• Powerful survivor stories from 1958 tornado (44:00)
• Where is broadcast meteorology going?  (01:11:00)
• TornadoTalk.com (01:31:25)
• Upcoming annular eclipse (01:33:55)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (No segment this week)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:29:45)
• National Weather Round-Up (01:43:50)
• E-Mail Segment (01:40:50)
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 925:

Dawn of Doppler – KAKE

Frank Waugh KAKE on X

Arowe Films on X

Picks of the Week:

James Aydelott – Bryan Passifiume on X: Tent on road video during storm

Jen Narramore – Moerdijk, South Holland, Netherlands Tornado – October 6, 1981

Rick Smith – Out

Neil Jacobs – Out

Troy Kimmel – Out

Kim Klockow-McClain – Eclipse Cereal Box Viewer

Bill Murray – Rob Strecker Sun Pillar photo

James Spann – LSU receives $5M funding to build high frequency radar systems on the coast

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, Dr. Neil Jacobs, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.

WeatherBrains Episode 924 is now online (October 2nd, 2023). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Tonight’s Guest WeatherBrain is the Director of the Indiana State Climate Office in the Midwestern Regional Climate Center as well as the Operations Manager of the Purdue Mesonet.  With over 25 years of climate service experience, she’s dedicated her efforts toward identifying opportunities for climate data to be transformed into decision support tools and resources.

Her research interests throughout her career have focused on climate applications and operational climate tools for stakeholders and decision support needs.  Dr. Beth Hall, welcome to WeatherBrains.

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• Upcoming eclipse (06:00)
• What is climatology?  (08:45)
• Details/focus of DRI (21:45)
• Cloud climatology concerns (42:00)
• What is a mesonet? (48:00)
• Getting started/cost/maintenance of a mesonet (01:06:00)
• Computer programming and AI in the future (01:21:30)
• Current flash drought in Alabama and overall increasing threats (01:23:30)
• Climate Prediction Center US Hazards Outlook showing rapid onset drought for SE US/Analysis/Origin (01:25:45)
• Urban Heat Islands/long-term climate records (01:30:30)
• NYC Flooding/Media misinformation (01:32:30)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:37:30)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:40:25)
• National Weather Round-Up
• E-Mail Segment (No segment this week)
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 924:

NOAA Climate Prediction Center

Midwestern Regional Climate Center

Dr. Beth Hall LinkedIn

Picks of the Week:

Dr. Beth Hall – Freeze Date Tool/Univ of Purdue

James Aydelott – Grant Tosterud on X: Las Vegas, New Mexico hail photo

Jen Narramore – Out

Rick Smith – Alex Spahn on X: Storm photo

Neil Jacobs – Out

Troy Kimmel – Aviation Weather Center BETA

Kim Klockow-McClain – New York deluge triggers flash floods, brings chaos to subways

Bill Murray – Foghorn

James Spann – Darin Brooks on X: Utah snow photo

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, Dr. Neil Jacobs, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.

WeatherBrains Episode 923 is now online (September 25th, 2023). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Tonight’s is a homegrown show that’s all about numerical weather prediction, led by our very own Dr. Neil Jacobs.

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• Difference between numerical models (05:00)
• What is a CAM?  (06:45)
• Models and resolution (19:00)
• Difference between predictability and accuracy (29:30)
• Government shutdowns and modeling (38:00)
• UFS (Unified Forecast System) explained (45:45)
• STP composite index and it’s uses (54:00)
• Geopolitics (01:01:00)
• Tropical/hurricane models and the HAFS (01:11:00)
• Models/mesonet data relationship (01:14:30)
• Climate Forecast System and it’s value (01:17:45)
• Dealing with summertime airmass thunderstorms (01:19:30)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:28:00)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:29:10)
• National Weather Round-Up (01:30:15)
• E-Mail Segment (01:
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 923:

Picks of the Week:

James Aydelott – Alex Spahn on X: Supercell photo near Ada, Oklahoma

Jen Narramore – Foghorn

Rick Smith – Out

Neil Jacobs – Foghorn

Troy Kimmel – Out

Kim Klockow-McClain – Dave Matthews Band “Satellite” Official Video

Bill Murray – Out

James Spann – Trends in U.S. Tornado Damage and Incidence

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, Dr. Neil Jacobs, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.