WeatherBrains

Tonight's Guest WeatherBrain is an Associate Professor at Villanova University, specializing in severe weather risks, societal impacts and hazard mitigation. His research focuses on tornado and lightning exposure at large outdoor gatherings. In addition, it focuses on urbanization effects on disasters and improving public safety strategies. Dr. Stephen Strader, welcome back to WeatherBrains.

Brandon Skalniak is a senior emergency management major at Millersville University of Pennsylvania. He is passionate about all things weather, having gained an interest in the field when he stumbled upon the Discovery Channel's Storm Chasers in second grade. Brandon loves weather history, and cataloging the country's significant weather events on radar is his main hobby. Welcome to the show as tonight's Guest Panelist, Brandon!

Also, Bruce Jones joins us to discuss the importance of NOAA Weather Radio and its integration in order to save lives. Welcome back, Bruce!

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: [email protected].

• Manufactured housing safety rules situation (17:00)
• National Manufactured Housing Database under construction (28:20)
• Secondary confirmation when warned with impending severe weather (45:00)
• Generalities on gender reaction to severe weather threats (48:30)
• Stopping flash flooding deaths and mitigating risk (53:40)
• Risk ranking metric developed by Dr. Strader (59:40)
• NASCAR lightning strike protocol (01:06:00)
• Tradeoffs when considering weather safety and proper procedure when in a warning (01:18:30)
• Further observations on tornado-related fatalities in mobile homes (01:23:00)
• Continued FAR in the industry and the fallout of these problems (01:25:00)
• Average lead-time of severe weather warnings (0 1:25:30)
• Bruce Jones/Midland Weather Radio (01:45:00)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:29:14)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:30:40)
• E-Mail Segment (01:31:55)
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 1005:

Midland Weather Radio

Brandon Skalniak on X

Picks of the Week:

Brandon Skalniak - Millersville AMS on X

Brandon Skalniak - Millersville AMS on Instagram

Bruce Jones - William Abner Eddy background

James Aydelott - Doppler radar view of Madill Oklahoma tornado

Jen Narramore - Deep Dive into Florida's Largest Tornado Outbreak - Hurricane Milton

Rick Smith - Pat Hyland, CCM: Durant radar view of Madill Oklahoma tornado

Troy Kimmel - US Weather Analysis Sites Restored After Funding Lapse

Kim Klockow-McClain - Trump Administration Restores Funding for Critical Weather Data Centers

John Gordon - A methodology for forecasting, heavy convection precipitation and flash flooding

John Gordon - Comparison of the meteorological aspects of the Big Thompson and the Rapid City Flash Floods

Bill Murray - Foghorn

James Spann - Storm Chase Archive

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

Tonight's Guest WeatherBrain is an AMS Certified Broadcast Meteorologist and Weather Communications Coach whose mission is to keep communities safe and help people live better lives through effective, viewer-focused weather communication. A four-time Emmy winner, Tim brings decades of major-market experience and was among the first in the nation to incorporate augmented reality into daily forecasts. Tim Heller, welcome back to WeatherBrains!

Also, Bruce Jones joins us to discuss the importance of NOAA Weather Radio and its integration in order to save lives.  Welcome back, Bruce!

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: [email protected].

• Significant severe thunderstorm activity in West Virginia (01:10)
• Lack of relevant online weather content by local TV stations (08:00)
• Tech early adopters and its influence on the field (15:00)
• Death of newspapers and other products of a bygone era (17:10)
• Issues with corporate meddling in local meteorologist televised forecasts (25:50)
• How technical should a TV meteorologist be when giving a public forecast?  (31:00)
• Emotional toll of weather-related trauma (44:15)
• Four key lessons that broadcast meteorologists need to UNLEARN!  (48:00)
• Earning social media followers and how it has changed the business (50:30)
• Difficulty communicating certainty and timing for winter weather events (01:06:15)
• Emerging prevalence of AI in the weather community (01:10:00)
• Bruce Jones/Midland Weather Radio (01:26:10)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:31:40)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:33:48)
• E-Mail Segment (01:34:50)
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 1004:

Midland Weather Radio

Picks of the Week:

Tim Heller - TV Weather Talent Coaching and Training - HellerWeather

Bruce Jones - Weather maps from the night the Titanic sank

James Aydelott - James Aydlott on Facebook: Blinded by extreme glare this PM?

Jen Narramore - Ryan Hoke on X: Inside an EF3 tornado in Jeffersontown, KY last week

Jen Narramore - Carried by hurricane waves, these tortoises were swept to Florida’s Fort De Soto

Rick Smith - Out

Troy Kimmel - Weather station chief punished for drunk observations at Okinawa's Ishigaki airport

Kim Klockow-McClain - Out

John Gordon - NOAA National Water Prediction Service

John Gordon - April 1-6, 2025 Severe Weather and Flooding

Bill Murray - Brandon Skalniak's Tornado Radar Museum

James Spann - Extended Range Severe Weather Environment Forecasts

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

Tonight's Guest WeatherBrain is a prolific author and Southern preparedness expert who has written over 75 novels that blend gripping survival scenarios with real world lessons drawn from his professional training in emergency management.  His work spans everything from tornadoes and hurricanes to grid-down solar flare events.  His storytelling offers a uniquely grounded, Southern approach to self-reliance and resilience.  Ron Foster, welcome!

Tonight's Guest Panelist is Jared Rennie, research meteorologist at NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information in North Carolina.  He's an AMS-certified consulting meteorologist who is passionate about data, accessibility, climate services and applying new technologies like AI and machine learning in the world of meteorology.

Also, Bruce Jones joins us to discuss the importance of NOAA Weather Radio and its integration in order to save lives.  Welcome back, Bruce!

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: [email protected].

• Cataclysmic flooding in Mid-South (02:30)
• Meteorologist fatigue after multiple day events (03:00)
• Senatobia, Mississippi tornado last week (06:30)
• What is a disaster-prepper?  (18:30)
• Prepper starter kit for beginners (20:00)
• How to purify water during a disaster (25:30)
• Living through 1979's Hurricane Frederic (34:15)
• Different perceptions of severe weather in the South compared to other regions (40:15)
• Internet dependency and society vulnerability (50:00)
• Carrington level solar events and appropriate reaction (01:02:00)
• Recommended basic survival kit (01:11:30)
• Bruce Jones/Midland Weather Radio (01:34:42)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:16:45)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:18:50)
• E-Mail Segment (01:20:25)
• National Weather Round-Up
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 1003:

Midland Weather Radio

Prepper Fiction Survival: Your Source for Prepper Fiction

Ron Foster on Amazon

Jared Rennie on X

Picks of the Week:

Jared Rennie - Jared Rennie on GitHub

Jared Rennie - CBS News on YouTube: How a small North Carolina town is recovering six months after Hurricane Helene

Bruce Jones - Gainesville, GA/Cooper Pants Factory tornado on April 6, 1936

James Aydelott - Amish speedy repairs mentioned in NOAA Storm Survey

Jen Narramore - Poplar Bluff History Museum

Rick Smith - Balanced Weather on Substack

Troy Kimmel - WFAA Y'all-itics

Kim Klockow-McClain - KY family goes viral for burying van as storm shelter. ‘Country boys can survive’

Kim Klockow-McClain - ‘Get rid of the whole thing’: After Stitt ousts Mark Goeller, Forestry Services comment irks #okleg

John Gordon - USGS Volcanoes on X: Mount St. Helens prank by WNAC-TV

Bill Murray - Foghorn

James Spann - NOAA’s GOES-19 satellite now operational, providing critical new data to forecasters

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

Tonight's Guest WeatherBrain is a fast-rising YouTube creator known for her deeply researched and emotionally resonant documentaries on high-end tornadoes.  Her channel goes beyond the radar and statistics in order to tell the human stories behind these devastating events.  Born and raised in East Tennessee, she combines strong narrative skills with a unique interest in global severe weather, particularly in undeserved regions like India and China.  Her work bridges science communication and empathy in a way that resonates with a new generation of weather enthusiasts.  Carly Anna, welcome to the show!  

Also, Bruce Jones joins us to discuss the importance of NOAA Weather Radio and its integration in order to save lives.  Welcome back, Bruce!

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: [email protected].

• Record highs in the South later this week?  (01:55)
• QLCS tornado hits Dothan, AL school (04:45)
• Origins of Carly Anna YouTube channel (15:25)
• 1997 Jarrell, Texas F5 tornado (17:00)
• Relationship between slow-moving weaker tornadoes and fast-moving tornadoes (31:50)
• Antecedent conditions prior to natural disasters (38:00)
• March 15th 2025 tornado in Plantersville (46:00)
• Recovering after tragic circumstances and providing the right answers (50:00)
• Average False Alarm Ratio (FAR) characterizations/solutions (56:30)
• Difficulties with QLCS tornadoes in less predictable environments (01:06:00)
• Inspiring future weather communicators/creators (01:14:00)
• Bruce Jones/Midland Weather Radio (01:20:30)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:17:58)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (No segment this week)
• E-Mail Segment (No segment this week)
• National Weather Round-Up
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 1002:

Midland Weather Radio

Carly Anna Weather on X

Carly Anna Weather on YouTube

Two Storms Apparel

Picks of the Week:

Carly Anna - Record breaking pollen count reported in Atlanta today

Bruce Jones - 3/31/23 Tornado Outbreak

James Aydelott - James Aydelott on X: "Left-split anti-cyclonic mesocyclone (clockwise rotation) has a very large hail threat moving NNE into Mustang"

Jen Narramore - Out

Rick Smith - Out

Troy Kimmel - Wisconsin 123F High Temp Error

Kim Klockow-McClain - Mark Goeller post on Facebook over recent fire weather and damage in Oklahoma

John Gordon - Weather History on X

Bill Murray - National Disaster Survey Report: "Hurricane Eloise: The Gulf Coast"

James Spann - James Spann on X: Tornado as seen from Dothan Regional Airport earlier this afternoon near Dale/Henry county line

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

Tonight's Guest WeatherBrain is one of the most respected voices in the field of broadcast meteorology. He celebrated his 45th anniversary with WGN-TV in August 2023, and officially retired from WGN-TV at the end of February 2024.  Tom Skilling, it's great to see you tonight!  

Meteorologist and Former Director of NWS (2013-2022) Louis Uccellini also joins us tonight as a Guest Panelist. He was also director of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction and served as the Permanent Representative of the United States for the World Meteorological Organization.  Thanks for joining us tonight, Louis!   

Joining us as Guest Panelist is a brilliant researcher and recently tenured Professor in the Department of Earth, Atmosphere, and Environment at Northern Illinois University. His research umbrella covers a wide range of topics related to severe weather, particularly the relationship between severe convective storms and climate change by utilizing dynamical downscaling.  Dr. Victor Gencini, welcome to the show!

Also, Bruce Jones joins us to discuss the importance of NOAA Weather Radio and its integration in order to save lives.  Welcome back, Bruce!

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: [email protected].

• New Panelist Introduction (05:15)
• 1990 Plainfield tornado tragedy (18:00)
• Lack of feasibility to privatize government warning systems for severe weather (25:00)
• Writing on the wall with budget cuts/staffing reductions and concerns for working in Government Sector/NOAA (41:00)
• Losing younger scientists to the private sector (55:45)
• November 17th, 2013 Washington, Illinois Tornado (01:00:30)
• Long-term budget concerns (01:05:00)
• Importance of not losing upper-air data when assimilating a public forecast (01:08:00)
• Development of global radiosonde network (01:20:00)
• Final thoughts on uncertain times in the industry (02:01:00)
• Inexpensive cost to taxpayers for NOAA's forecasts and services (01:53:00)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (No segment this week)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:54:57)
• E-Mail Segment 
• National Weather Round-Up
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 1001:

Midland Weather Radio

Victor Gensini, PhD, CCM on X

Tom Skilling on X

Picks of the Week:

Bruce Jones - Foghorn

James Aydelott - James Aydelott on X: "Twisters" Sequel?

Jen Narramore - Germantown Regional History and Genealogy Center

Rick Smith - 2024 Severe Weather Year In Review

Troy Kimmel - Foghorn

Kim Klockow-McClain - Foghorn

John Gordon - Foghorn

Bill Murray - Foghorn

James Spann - NSSL Severe Convection and Climate Research

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