News Briefs

Coming and going

Jeff Trapp is now an associate professor in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Purdue University. Jeff says, "I lived a dream in my affiliation with the premier research lab for severe and hazardous weather, but now I'm off to follow another dream of teaching and working closely with students."

Renee McPherson is on loan for one year from the Oklahoma Climatological Survey as the assistant director of CIMMS, replacing John Cortinas. Renee's main role is acting as the liaison between NOAA and OU.

Awards

Mike Baldwin, CIMMS, received the Editor's Award from the "Journal of Weather and Forecasting," "for his thoughtful, helpful, and detailed reviews that consistently assisted in improving submitted manuscripts."

SMART Radars capture complete picture of Hurricane Isabel

Two SMART Radars placed 40 miles apart gathered data as Hurricane Isabel came ashore along the North Carolina coast in mid-September. The data will be used to study the detailed structure of the near-surface winds in the storm as well as to determine how the storm generates a large area of intense rainfall.

Visitors to NSSL

NSSL recently hosted the Undersecretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response, Michael D. Brown, along with Gary Jones, acting Regional Director, FEMA Region 6, and NWS Southern Region Director Bill Proenza. The group listened to a presentation on "Tornado Deaths and Mobile Homes" by Harold Brooks and received a tour of the Phased Array Radar by Doug Forsyth. SMART Radars capture complete picture of Hurricane Isabel Two SMART Radars placed 40 miles apart gathered data as Hurricane Isabel came ashore along the North Carolina coast in mid-September. The data will be used to study the detailed structure of the near-surface winds in the storm as well as to determine how the storm generates a large area of intense rainfall.

Map discussions resume

Daily NSSL/SPC map discussions resumed after Labor Day providing an opportunity to interact in an informal setting and discuss the daily weather as well as operationally-relevant research topics, results, problems, and works in progress. The discussions are held in the Science Support Area adjacent to the SPC Operations Room from 1:00-1:30 Monday through Friday.

Cimarron radar retired

NSSL's Cimarron radar, located 15 miles west of Oklahoma City, has been decommissioned. The radar, based on a Navy FPS-18 surplus radar, was first commissioned in 1973. It was converted to dual polarization in 1988. Data collected from the Cimarron radar lead to many scientific discoveries, and made a valuable contribution to dual polarization research.

Severe Weather Workshop

The 2004 Severe Weather Workshop has been scheduled for March 4-6, 2004. More information can be found at: http://www.norman.noaa.gov/nsww2004/