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Greater Milwaukee tation is not in the area. In "clear air mode," the radar The chapter held a meeting on 27 November 1993 can detect very weak boundaries in the atmosphere, at the (NWS) Forecast made visible by insects, pollen, or density discontinu- Office located near Sullivan, Wisconsin. The topic was ities. The radar is sensitive enough to pick up cirrus the NWS's new Doppler radar system, which was clouds hundreds of miles away. installed at the Sullivan office in August. After welcom- Last explained that the radar system is made up of ing the capacity gathering, Ken Rizzo, NWS area three minicomputers. One, known as the Radar Data manager for Wisconsin, handed over the talk to Jeff Acquisition (RDA), actually controls the radar and Last, warning preparedness meteorologist at the of- gathers base data—reflectivity, velocity, and spec- fice. trum width. Ground clutter suppression is also per- Last began the afternoon's activities with a 90- formed by the RDA. The second, the Radar Product minute presentation that covered several aspects of Generator (RPG), generates more than 70 products radar and characteristics of the NWS that meteorologists use to evaluate the weather. The Doppler radar (known as the WSR-88D, for Weather RPG also controls communications between the radar Surveillance Radar-1988 Doppler). He discussed and other users from across the country. The third several basic radar principles, including scattering, computer system is known as the Principal User refraction, and attenuation. Last stressed that the Processor (PUP). The PUP computer is what runs the radar user must be cognizant of the atmospheric workstation that the forecasters use to view and conditions around the radar site to accurately interpret manipulate the radar products. what he or she sees. Last also discussed Doppler velocity processing Last discussed operational characteristics of the and interpretation. The radar does not measure the WSR-88D. The radar is always on, even when precipi- frequency shift produced by moving particles, per se,

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Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 275

Unauthenticated | Downloaded 10/07/21 12:03 PM UTC but rather pulse-to-pulse phase shifts, a technique held. Five students, all seniors, spoke on their expe- known as pulse-pair processing. Another important riences at various internships during the summer. The point was that the radar measures radial velocity, that NWS, television, and research were among the topics is, that component of particle motion parallel to the discussed. Speakers stressed the importance of in- radar beam. The audience participated in interpreting terning while in college. Also discussed were paid numerous velocity patterns produced by the Sullivan versus volunteer work, as well as the pros and cons of WSR-88D. interning for college credit. Last concluded the presentation by showing pic- tures from the Sullivan WSR-88D. A tour of the Riverside-San Bernadino forecast office and a hands-on demonstration of the The chapter met on 30 November 1993 at the El radar followed. Torito Restaurant in San Bernadino. The featured speaker for the evening was chapter member Marga- Lyndon State ret Gross, the lead fire weather meteorologist for The third meeting of the season was held on 9 southern California. The title of her presentation was November 1993. Paul Sisson, a meteorologist from "Forecasting under Fire: The Southern California Fires the NWS Burlington office, opened the meeting with a of Fall 1993." talk on NEXRAD and severe in the Gross noted that the success of the fire weather northeast . He showed some textbook forecasts and the fire suppression efforts was the cases of hook echoes in severe thunderstorms. Sisson culmination of years of planning and training and emphasized the vertical structure of the hook echo. He excellent coordination among all the agencies in- then presented several case studies from last sum- volved. The 18 agencies in California operate under a mer, detailing Doppler pictures of severe storms in system called FIRESCOPE, which brings all agency New York. Sisson made it clear that severe storms in decision makers to a single location—in this case the the Northeast have the same characteristics as se- South Zone Operations Coordination Center in River- vere storms in the Midwest. He showed several meth- side—and includes complete sharing of resources ods used by the NWS to make short-term predictions among the agencies. of severe weather. He joined Bob Dell, meteorologist Gross reported that virtually every decision made in charge of the NWS Burlington, and Scott Whittier, during the emergency was based on weather fore- NWS Burlington, inaquestion-and-answersessionon casts. She said that the numerical models provided Doppler and the NWS in general. To show their good forecasts as much as 132 hours in advance of appreciation, the chapter presented Sisson with a T- the onset of the Santa Ana winds. Since the fires shirt. occurred at the time of year when the fire season had After Sisson's presentation, Chapter President Pete already ended for most of the country, resources were Cote announced that the chapter has helped purchase already being moved toward southern California as an SF-171 program. It is expected to be installed in the soon as a red flag warning was issued, well before the Lyndon State meteorology lab by early December. discovery of the first fire. Prices for the 19th Annual Northeastern Storm Con- According to Gross, the confidence of the forecast- ference have been set and are ready to be announced. ers that a second outbreak of Santa Ana winds would T. J. Del Santo, vice president, gave an update on the occur the next week resulted in the decision to keep spring trip to Washington, D.C. Prices are set and the the air tankers and fire fighters in the area. It was agenda is to include the National Meteorological Cen- therefore possible to have more than 4000 fire fighters ter, World Weather Building, and possibly AM Weather. combating the new fires within a few hours of their In the national forecasting contest, the results have discovery. been encouraging, showing improvement over last Both Gross and Ron Hamilton from the Riverside year. An update on the science fair was given by NWS office forecast "under fire," as each had to take Allison Penney, secretary. The date has been moved some time to move valuables from their homes, which from February to March 1994 to accommodate more were threatened by the fires. All the NWS meteorolo- schools. Fundraising and the Winter Ball were dis- gists involved in the emergency, including those in the cussed by Cindy Fitzgibbon, treasurer. The Winter regional headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah, have Ball was held 22 January 1994. A joint Christmas been honored for their teamwork. fundraiser with Sigma Zeta Honorary Society was Gross is currently writing a technical report on the planned for December. Finally, Jim Magarelli, public weather during the fires. The report will include her relations, spoke about the two other December events: observations of the interactions between upper-level the internship meeting and the Pizza Hut party. jet streaks and low-level orographic channeling of the On 2 December 1993 an internship meeting was winds in contributing to the rapid intensification of the

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Unauthenticated | Downloaded 10/07/21 12:03 PM UTC Laguna Canyon fire. Gross noted that although there Steve Amburn, science officer at the Tulsa Weather were many similarities between the two Santa Ana Service Office, gave a short presentation on how wind events, there were also some differences. When profiler winds can be used for short-term forecasting. flying over the affected areas she noted that the Gary Shore, lead meteorologist for KJRH Channel Laguna Canyon fire completely consumed the vegeta- 2 in Tulsa, gave a short talk on the conflict between tion, which was not the case in the Topanga Canyon science and faith. He kept the talk brief to encourage (Malibu) fire. open discussion by the other attending members on this subject. Northeast Oklahoma The meeting was held on 30 November 1993 at the Kansas City Hardesty South Public Library. Several chapter mem- On 28 October 1993, chapter members gathered at bers presented short talks on a variety of topics. Mike the Black & Veatch cafeteria. Jack Hales of the Vojtesak gave a short presentation on the apparent National Severe Storms Forecast Center spoke about cooling trend observed in Tulsa since the installation southern California tornadoes. Hales said that he has of ASOS. He said that instrument placement and been studying this subject for the past ten years and topography explained the cooling trend. has discovered some interesting facts: 79 tornadoes Steven Piltz, the warning coordination meteorolo- have been documented in the Los Angeles area from gist at the Tulsa Weather Service Office, gave a short 1962 to 1993; most of these tornadoes occurred from presentation on the increasing use of helicity by January through March around the noon hour; and operational forecasters in severe weather analysis some of the tornadoes were on the ground for 10 miles and prediction. A program, developed by Piltz, that and caused millions of dollars worth of damage. utilizes the profiler network winds allows forecasters to According to Hales, no fatalities have resulted from display hourly helicity values. Piltz presented several these tornadoes. case studies where helicity was used as one predictor Hales noted that unlike the prefrontal development to use for delineating areas of severe versus tornadic of most Great Plains tornadoes, California tornadoes activity. occurred after the passage of a cold front but ahead of

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Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 277

Unauthenticated | Downloaded 10/07/21 12:03 PM UTC a secondary trough. He explained that helicity, the the atmosphere to recover so quickly from one heavy change in wind speed and direction with height, also rain event to allow convection to begin again 24 hours plays an important role in the formation of California later. He noted that a portion of the data had been tornadoes: that is, the greater the helicity present, the collected this summer from all of these events. greater the likelihood of tornadic activity. This helicity A question-and-answer session followed the pre- is influenced in part by the local terrain of the area. The sentation. The chapter presented a Midland Weather coastal mountains in the Los Angeles area redirect Radio to Przybylinski in appreciation of his program. and distort the winds, causing the increased helicity. It was noted that indeed, many of the tornadoes have Millersville occurred in the basin formed by the Santa Ana and The first meeting of the 1993/94 school year was San Bernardino Mountains. held on 22 September 1993. It was mostly an organi- After a brief question-and-answer period, it was zation and get-acquainted meeting and attendance announced that Pat Cooper of the NWS Office in was good. Pizza was ordered after the meeting ad- Pleasant Hill, Missouri, will replace Michelle Collins, journed. who relocated to Houston, Texas, as chapter secre- Jeff Zimmerman, a 1983 alumnus of Millersville tary. University, spoke to the chapter on 1 November 1993. Members convened at the Hardware Cafe in Lib- Zimmerman, who is with the NWS Office of Hydrology, erty, Missouri, on 30 November 1993. Members came is engaged in work on NWS's forthcoming AWIPS from Topeka and from the Kansas City metro area. weather data analysis/display system. Of particular Chapter Vice President Tim Destri introduced Pete interest was the intention of the builders to run the Browning, the science and operations officer with the system off of Unix, with the coding done in C and NWS Office in Pleasant Hill, Missouri. He was seeking dBase, thus making AWIPS much more accessible for volunteers for an experimental rainfall reporting pro- modifications than the current AFOS system. gram that the Pleasant Hill office is setting up, based During the first two weeks of November, the chap- on a pager-type system. ter aided Millersville University's Social Work Organi- Chapter President Dan McCarthy gave welcoming zation (SWO) in publicizing a dance as a part of their remarks and made announcements concerning the "Human Diversity Week." Admission to the dance chapter newsletter deadlines, the next scheduled required a cash or food donation to aid flood victims in meeting, and the introduction of new chapter secre- the Midwest. The SWO's appeal for help was prompted tary Pat Cooper. McCarthy then introduced the by the chapter's successful food drive for victims of evening's speaker, Ron Przybylinski, science and Hurricanes Andrew and Iniki last year. The dance was operations officer at the St. Louis Weather Service held on 12 November 1993; approximately ten chapter Forecast Office and vice president of the Greater St. members attended. Louis chapter. On 1 December 1993, Robert Case, meteorologist Przybylinski spoke on the flooding in and near the in charge at the new NWS Warning and Forecast St. Louis area during the summer of 1993. He first Office (WFO) in State College, Pennsylvania, visited showed a slide presentation with pictures of flooded the Millersville chapter. Case delivered a talk on areas on the Mississippi River, both along the St. Louis weather, focusing on the importance of not losing riverfront and in the town of Alton, . He also one's enchantment with the weather regardless of showed aerial views of Missouri River flooding around how technical his or her career in meteorology be- Chesterfield, Missouri. This was followed by slides comes. Case also spent a substantial amount of time showing reflectivity and storm total precipitation data discussing tropical cyclone formation; the implications from the St. Louis WSR-88D radar for 30 June and 6 of the Southern Oscillation and wet and dry years in July 1993. the African Sahel in tropical cyclone climatology also The second part of Przybylinski's talk was a pre- were discussed. sentation of a heavy rain event in central Missouri The presentation concluded with slides of the new between 1200 and 2000Z on 6 June 1993. He pointed WFO in State College and from the WSR-88D radar out that this was not the usual time frame for a heavy taken during a heavy rain event from the weekend of rain event in Missouri. His presentation on transparen- 27 November 1993. cies included map analyses of various meteorological During the business portion of the meeting, mem- aspects of the event and radar reflectivity and storm bers decided to amend the constitution to officially total precipitation data from the WSR-88D. separate the office of secretary-treasurer into two In his concluding remarks, Przybylinski noted the offices and to raise chapter dues by $2 per year. Final uniqueness of the summer of 1993's weather pattern, announcements on upcoming travel to the AMS An- how it was so persistent and how amazing it was for nual Meeting in Nashville and the Northeastern Storm

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Unauthenticated | Downloaded 10/07/21 12:03 PM UTC Conference in Saratoga Springs were made. Three new committees were initiated by the executive com- mittee: meetings, fundraising, and special events. The membership discussed the possibility of hosting a |J8|Dj rector conference on isentropic meteorology sometime in Atmospheric the next two years. Technology Division

Cincinnati The Atmospheric Technology Division (ATD) is a division The chapter held a meeting on 2 December 1993 at of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), the studios of WXIX-TV. Rich Apuzzo, lead meteo- located in Boulder, Colorado. NCAR is operated by the rologist for the Fox affiliate, demonstrated the Indigo University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, a consortium of 61 member universities, under the principal sponsorship of Silicongraphics "3-D Earth Watch" system. This state- the National Science Foundation. ATD provides observing facil- of-the-art weatheranimation package allows the viewer ities, technical support, and a variety of other support services to to "fly" across the satellite picture, through the clouds, scientists in universities, NCAR, and other organizations engaged in atmospheric and oceanic research. Its director and and under the clouds to see where it is raining. staff are heavily involved in planning, developing technology Apuzzo explained that hourly satellite images are for, and implementing major national or international research first redrawn into the program on a topographically programs, as well as serving individual university, NCAR and joint projects. accurate base map. The computer uses gray shades The ATD Director provides overall scientific and technical to give the clouds height, but the operator must leadership for development of modern observing capabilities to manually set the base height. The angle of view and meet current and foreseeable needs of the research community. Develops long-term observing facility plans and initiates and orientation of the map can be easily changed. The directs activities for funding the development, acquisition, and satellite image could even be displayed as if the viewer operation offield observin g facilities. Devises and implements were over northern Canada looking south. The opera- various funding and procurement strategies. Participates in the planning of major national and international field research pro- tor picks a starting and ending point for the flight, and grams. Maintains effective liaison onfield facilit y development the computer will derive the motion in between the two and operation with the university user community, other federal points. The viewer then flies toward the earth, passes agencies involved in atmospheric research, and national and international research organizations and with NSF regarding through the cloud deck, and emerges in the shadows facility development, operation funding, and long-range plan- beneath the clouds. Radar data are used to produce ning. The ATD Director supervises employees in ways consis- rain beneath the clouds. If the higher reflectivity is high tent with UCAR policies and with its equal employment oppor- tunity and affirmative action programs. enough, simulated lightning strokes will occur. City Requirements include a PhD in physical science or engi- names, temperatures, and a variety of other weather neering OR equivalent combination of education and experience data can be displayed beneath the clouds. and demonstrated scientific and technical leadership in areas relevant to ATD's activities. The incumbent must be a promi- According to Apuzzo, the system can store around nent and respected member of the atmospheric sciences com- 50 seconds of animation, which is plenty for most 2- to munity. Other requirements include: ability to manage a techni- 3-minute weather shows. The new system has not cal and scientific program; broad knowledge of atmospheric observing facilities, broad vision regarding observing facilities been used yet for severe weather, but Apuzzo said the required to pursue major goals of the science and extensive thunderstorms will be impressive. The local topogra- research experience in the use of such facilities; current knowl- phy maps (derived from Landsat) will allow a new way edge about major research problems and programs across the full spectrum of atmospheric science served by NCAR; demon- of showing the viewers where the severe weather is, strated skill in working cooperatively with individual and using an animated map, to where it is moving. scientists and organizations, particularly those in the university/ Apuzzo said that he is anxious to see the first hurri- federal research community; effective communication, advo- cacy, and diplomacy skills; willingness to interact effectively in a cane and fly through its eye. The same graphics cross-disciplinary fashion with the broader geosciences research package was used to create the hurricane in the movie community; and willingness to travel extensively. Jurassic Park. Applications should indude a letter of interest, curriculum vitae and list of publications. Please forward to: ATD Search Committee, NCAR, Human Resources Dept., P.O. Box 3000, New York City/Long Island Boulder, CO 80307by 5:00 pm on February 15,1994. Refer to On 3 November 1993, Vincent J. Cardone, presi- job #1910 on all correspondence. dent of Oceanweather Inc. of Cos Cob, Connecticut, NCAR has a strong commitment to the principles of diver- sity. In that spirit, we are interested in receiving applications spoke on "Recent 'Ultra Extreme' East Coast Storms" from a broad spectrum of people, including women, minorities, at Nassau Community College. Caardone said that and disabled individuals. the "Halloween Storm" of October 1991, the "100-year storm" of December 1992, and the "Storm of the National Center for Atmospheric Research Century" of March 1993 induced unprecedented ocean responses in terms of storm surge and ocean waves along and just off the East Coast, in addition to their

Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 279

Unauthenticated | Downloaded 10/07/21 12:03 PM UTC well-publicized impact on land. These storms trans- Tri State late into a once in a 5000-year return period for the The final meeting of 1993 was held on 15 December measured 100-ft wave heights. Comparably, severe at the St. Francis College Planetarium in Fort Wayne, storms have also been observed in recent winters off . The featured speaker was Kathy Sladen, an the northwest coast of Europe. educator at St. Charles Elementary School in Fort According to Cardone, the extensive array of moored Wayne. Sladen presented several aspects of science buoys maintained by the U.S. (NOAA) and Canadian education. She explained the processes used in se- (AES) weather services allows documentation of these lecting science textbooks for classroom use, the vari- East Coast storms to an extent never before possible. ous requirements on science education devised by Recently completed hindcast studies of these storms state boards, and methods used to keep schoolchil- were reviewed as they help place the storm's severity dren interested in science. in a historical context and addressed the following Sladen briefly highlighted how textbooks used in issues, each of which was discussed in detail: Has the the classroom are chosen. She said that she serves storm climate of the North Atlantic Ocean changed? on the Indiana State Textbook Committee for science Are these types of storms predictable? What can be and weather. According to Sladen, one concern is that done to mitigate the devastating impact of these types an author of a chapter within a science textbook might of storms on the marine community? Cardone's pre- not be a scientist. Copious amounts of time are spent sentation was dubbed the "talk of the century" at the searching for the textbook that is going to be the most meeting. useful to students. After his presentation, Cardone demonstrated his Sladen described the Indiana regulations on what is portable PC ship routing computer software that inte- taught at the different grade levels in the sciences. grated current weather downloaded from satellites to She said that science teachers often are forced to tie the most appropriate ship route given the current and science areas such as meteorology (that is not re- forecasted state of the sea and predicted weather quired) into a broader subject area such as earth conditions en route. science. To help bring the regulations into perspec- tive, Sladen showed her class syllabus and discussed how her meteorology program was devised. She also explained how the science fair at St. Charles Elemen- tary School was organized. She provided each AMS member with a science fair "survival kit" to emphasize Senior Meteorologist the completeness of the program. Join the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research Sladen explained methods used to create interest (UCAR), in Boulder, CO, organizing and participating in the in science among children. She emphasized that Cooperative Program for Operational Meteorology, Education and Training (COMET). hands-on experiments and student-teacher interac- Serving as the scientific resource, plan the COMET Residence tion are the most important elements. Courses including organizing course development, writing orienta- Sladen concluded her presentation by showing tion materials, coordinating with advisory committees and instruc- tors, supervising classroom sessions, and recommending case some science textbooks, the new laser disc technol- study selections for use in computerized classes including the ogy, and several projects used within the classroom. design of computer-based learning modules. She also described her involvement with Science Requires a PhD (or MS with equivalent experience) in Atmospheric Sciences, Meteorology, or related discipline, and at Central, which helps create a way for children and least 10 years' experience in research or operational meteorology adults to learn about science and technology. Accord- and . Must possess extensive experience in ing to Sladen, Science Central works toward its goals mesoscale meteorological experiments, observing tools, and mesoscale diagnosis. A background working in an academic or by accessing volunteer organizations that are commit- teaching environment is highly desirable. For more information on ted to increasing public awareness of science and COMET and a complete job description contact Hanne Mauriello at technology through hands-on activities, traveling sci- (303)497-8492. ence exhibitions, and learning programs in area To apply, send cover letter and resume to: UCAR, Human Resources Dept., P.O. Box 3000, Boulder, CO 80307. Refer to job schools. She said that the Fort Wayne Science Cen- #1922 on all correspondence. Applications for this position will be tral is refurbishing the old city Light and Power Building accepted until 5:00 pjn. on April 15,1994. into a new science museum. UCAR has a strong commitment to the principles of diversity. In that spirit, we are interested in receiving applications from a New officers were elected at the meeting: Greg broad spectrum of people, including women, minorities, and dis- Shoup, president; Rick McCoy, program chairman; abled individuals. • University Corporation for Paul Witsaman, treasurer/secretary; and Jonathan Atmospheric Research Racy, secretary. •

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