Administrative Update
We are transferring our podcast hosting to a new platform so that you can still listen to all of your favorite WeatherHype episodes!
We are transferring our podcast hosting to a new platform so that you can still listen to all of your favorite WeatherHype episodes!
Surprise! It's a new episode of WeatherHype! On this special episode of WeatherHype, we are breaking down the messaging and graphics associated with Hurricane Laura and reflect on the impact that Laura made to communities in Texas and Louisiana. Tweets Discussed During the Episode: Modernized Hurricane Laura Graphics: https://twitter.com/geostrophic/status/1298392681631154179 (https://twitter.com/geostrophic/status/1298392681631154179) NWS 'Unsurvivable' Tweet #1: https://twitter.com/nws/status/...
We are joined by Robert Prestley (NCAR), who talks about his research analyzing broadcast meteorologists in Houston who were covering Hurricane Harvey in 2017. Using YouTube videos of the broadcasters, he used qualitative research methods to understand individual meteorologists at KHOU-TV and their use of specific words, phrases, and figurative language to talk about the impacts of Hurricane Harvey on Houstonians. Modifications were made for the Introduction and transition music "Baby, I'm Bad W...
Minh and Castle catch up, and we're talking about.... of course, the coronavirus. Castle thinks he actually had COVID-19, so we walk through what that experience was like. And how does the pandemic play into weather and climate? We talk a bit about that. And Minh downloads TikTok... so that's a thing. Check in and listen to our latest episode of WeatherHype.
It's National Weather Podcast Month, and we are joined by Caroline MacDonald to discuss the use of color in the weather enterprise! We touch on color as a means to communicate weather-related risk, Caroline's thesis project on color consistency, and, finally, discuss the challenges of maintaining color consistency in the weather enterprise that is dominated by marketing and branding constraints. Stick around, because an exciting episode of WeatherHype is coming up next! Make sure to check out th...
It's a new season of WeatherHype, and that means it's time for another American Meteorological Society conference! As the weather enterprise gears up for one of the largest conferences in our discipline, we thought it would be fun to talk about some of our previous experiences, provide some tips/tricks for attending the conference, and help first time attendees understand what to expect. On this new episode of season 5, we are breaking down all the hidden knowledge about the AMS Conference and g...
We've talked about weather and social media a number of times on WeatherHype, but we wanted to shift gears just a bit and talk about social media and how the weather enterprise uses it. We've seen social networks change and evolve over time. And so have organizations like the National Weather Service in terms of how they take to platforms like Facebook and Twitter to communicate weather and climate information. Today we're taking a little deeper dive into how the National Weather Service uses Tw...
This is a special news report! Castle and Minh have been busy during August and September, but the past week's events involving Hurricane Dorian, President Trump, Alabama, and a Sharpie were worthy of a podcast episode! On this special episode of WeatherHype, we are breaking down the timeline and providing our personal commentary on the events that took place starting September 1st. So stay tuned, because an unfiltered episode of WeatherHype is coming up next! Modifications were made for the Int...
The disaster and natural hazard communities are made up of many moving parts and people that play different roles. Two prominent roles are “the researcher” and “the practitioner.” However, to successfully implement new-found knowledge into practice and to further investigate some of the practical challenges that practitioners face, researchers and practitioners must work together. That’s where Impact360 Alliance can help out. Impact 360 Alliance, which was previously known as the Alliance for In...
Because a majority of our weather information heavily relies on the use of maps and other geographic information, meteorologists are always asking: can people find themselves on a map? This week’s episode of Weather Hype is inspired by a fireside chat that broadcast meteorologist James Spann had a few of months ago. During this discussion, James asks a great question: Can people simply not understand maps? On this episode of Weather Hype, we dig deeper into this question as we search for alterna...
#WxTwitter. It's a fascinating social media community made up of meteorologists, weather enthusiasts and people who just want to talk about all things weather. WxTwitter is a space for collaborative ideas, sharing weather photos and videos and networking. But like any community, there was bound to be disagreements in opinion and clashing of ideas. We had an episode dedicated to WxTwitter a couple years ago exploring this online community. Now we're looking at how this niche social media world ha...
In October of 2018, Super Typhoon Yutu, packing winds of 180 mph, slammed into Saipan, the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands. And in it's wake, complete destruction. We talk with April Lipinski, who works with the Federal Emergency Management Agency. And she was in Saipan after the island and other parts of the commonwealth were left reeling from the devastating impacts of the storm. While April and her team were working to help the people of Saipan, there was an interesting rumor t...
You know, as a meteorologist, did you know you can be right half the time but still have a job. The amount of times we all hear that, am I right? There's no doubt public perception of weather and weather forecasting isn't always great. And with many meteorologists and forecasters in the spotlight, the hate messages can be downright hurtful, and that can take a terrible mental toll on those who work so hard to predict the weather. But, many on-air personalities have had enough, and they're fighti...
Currently, the weather community uses the Saffir-Simpson scale to communicate potential property damage due to hurricane force winds. At its core, the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is a 1 to 5 rating based on a hurricane’s sustained wind speed. However, recently the weather community has begun to question whether categorizing hurricanes based solely on their wind speed can effectively communicate the multitude of hazards that often accompany tropical weather. To address this concern, AccuW...
It's been a few months since Castle and Minh were able to record an episode of WeatherHype together, so obviously there's going to be a bit of shenanigans in this episode. In addition to everyone's favorite "Song of the Week" segment, we have some cool gift ideas for the weather person in your life, a few organizations that we will be giving to this holiday season, and lots of other weird things...because, well, it's us. Did you not expect it to get a little weird? Castle is giving to: Cool Effe...
On this week’s episode of WeatherHype, we continue the conversation with Katie Wedemeyer-Stombel and discuss balancing professional and personal relationships in graduate school. Katie gives us her personal insights on the topic, as well as provides us with tips and strategies for overcoming some of these challenges in all walks of professional life. Stay tuned, Part 2 of Katie's interview is coming up next! For more information on the topics discussed during this podcast or for additional links...
Impostor Syndrome is the psychological phenomenon in which an individual doubts their accomplishments and has a persistent internalized fear of being exposed as a fraud. Despite evidence of their accomplishments, most individuals attribute their success to luck, or as a result of deceiving others into thinking they are more intelligent than they perceive themselves to be. Have you ever had feelings like this? Ever felt overwhelmed in your job or in school? Ever feel like it is extremely difficul...
As Hurricane Florence made landfall on Friday, September 14th near Wrightsville, NC, meteorologists were forecasting that roughly 10 million gallons of rainfall would impact North Carolina and the surrounding states. You heard me right - 10 million gallons! To try and put that into perspective, that is enough to fill 15 million Olympic size swimming pools, 36 thousand Empire State buildings, and 60 million Washington Memorials. How can we even communicate something that is so hard to imagine? Jo...
Doppler radar technology is easily accessible, and we often see if on our local news, on our weather apps, and on websites. But do people know how to properly use radars to access weather conditions? Do people find radars to be useful for their day-to-day activities? We talk with Michelle Saunders, a PhD candidate at the University of South Florida, who's looking into these questions and ideas. Plus, we talk to one person who's never really used a radar before (my roomie) and sit down for a one-...
On this episode, we are switching things up a bit! We've been a bit busy this summer, so we're going to have a little fun on this episode! Join us as we discuss a hodge podge of weather topics, including: lightning & hiking safety, the extreme temperatures on the West Coast, and World Cup weather!. Also included are personal stories and even a Catfish moment! As always, we finish up with our songs of the week. Get ready, because a goofy episode of Weather Hype is headed your way! For links t...
A tragic accident involving an amphibious vehicle commonly known as a duck boat has claimed the lives of 17 people including nine members of one family. It happened on Table Rock Lake near the tourist town of Branson, Missouri as two different duck boats carrying dozens of passengers were hit by a severe thunderstorm on the evening of July 19, 2018. While one boat was able to make it to shore safely, the other boat carrying 31 people unfortunately capsized, with 17 people losing their lives. Her...
In the weather community, we often talk about vulnerable populations and strive for inclusion of all people. We're joined by Matt Bolton, an undergraduate student at St. Leo University, who has done incredible work relating to this important topic. Matt's work is diverse, and one area he looks into is Autism Spectrum Condition and how it relates to meteorology. Matt shares his insights from his research and experiences in hopes that we can all be more aware and understanding of those who are aut...
In the last two weeks, the eruption of Kīlauea, a shield volcano on the Big Island of Hawai'i, has forced roughly 2,000 residents to evacuate, destroyed around 40 structures, and even caused several serious injuries. We are joined by Dr. Janine Krippner to explore the vast world of volcanology. While the Kīlauea event has been devastating, it is our hope that it can bring hazard communities together to learn from one another. Therefore, this podcast is a first step toward learning about the simi...
Minh recently went on a personal trip to Iceland, and he gained really cool perspectives on the country's emergency management system. Join Minh and Castle as they recount some of his stories of how emergency management and weather are similar and different in Iceland compared to the United States. Minh also shares some great travel tips if you plan to visit Iceland in the future and digs into what weather communication might be like for tourists and visitors who travel to other countries based ...
Weather warnings are the bread and butter of weather communication, but is it possible to have too many weather warnings? Can there be too much of a good thing? We're joined by broadcast meteorologist Joe Lauria from Fox4 in Kansas City, who had a hunch that too many severe thunderstorm warnings were affecting his viewers. On this episode of WeatherHype, Joe tells us all about his investigation into the number of severe thunderstorm warnings that are issued around the country. We finish up the e...
Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts all across the country have the opportunity to learn about weather and climate, but how they're learning about that information can be a little confusing. While STEM education and outreach is important, some of the new standards and requirements within the Girl Scouts of America program are making weather education much more difficult. We are joined by Meteorologist Christina Edwards from WHNT News 19 in Huntsville, Alabama for more insight on this topic. From Thin Min...
They say if you don't like something, change it. Well, have you ever walked outside, hating the weather and wishing you could change it? If you have, you're not alone and you're not the first person to think about it. C.W. Post, a Texas entrepreneur and idea-man, had an explosive idea to alter the weather above the West Texas skies. We're joined by Jonathan Jennings, the Director of Meteorology of the Texas Weather Modification Association. He will give us insights into weather modification, inc...
What is it about Weather Podcasts? Wait... Mark, what are you doing here?? On this episode of Weatherhype, we are joined by Mark Jelinek (the host of the fantastic weather podcast: What is it About the Weather?) to discuss podcasting as a story-telling medium, NOAA's Weather Ready Nation initiative, and the future of weather podcasting. Mark conducted a small study with some of the weather podcast's audiences to ask: Are we, the podcast hosts, being good Weather Ready Nation Ambassadors? You'll ...
Inspired by the recent In the Elements podcast, this episode of Weather Hype is dedicated to continuing the conversation around mental health. Specifically, we share personal stories of mental health, experiences, and strategies for overcoming our own personal struggles. Additionally, the conversation moves into discussing the challenges of undergraduate and graduate school and the associated mental health that accompanies these stressful situations. Finally, we deep dive into the world of socia...
The American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting is billed as the "world's largest yearly gathering for the weather, water, and climate community." For Castle and Minh, it's a great opportunity to learn about new research, connect with folks in the weather and climate world, and most importantly to reunite with old friends. There are so many things happening at AMS every year, and there's absolutely no way we could spend roughly an hour going over every single detail. But, we tried to cover so...