Tonight's episode features TWO special guests!
Our Guest WeatherBrain for tonight is an award winning journalist and author who's latest book "Cloud Warriors" was recently named one of Barnes and Nobles's best science and technology books in 2025 with a background in investigative and narrative journalism. He brings a deep curiosity and perspective to the world of atmospheric science. In researching his book, he traveled across the country embedded with scientists at the National Weather Service. His book explores the shifting landscape of weather forecasting at a time that climate change, technical disruption and institutional uncertainty is shaking the foundations of our industry. Thomas Weber, welcome!
Our Guest Panlist is the lead meteorologist at the NWS forecast office in State College, PA. He's got years of operational forecasting experience and plays a key leadership role in the accuracy, timeliness, and relevance of forecasts for central Pennsylvania. He's deeply involved in mentoring younger forecasters and helping to communicate critical weather information to emergency managers and the public. He's also a graduate of Penn State. Welcome to the show, John Banghoff!
Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.
- Role/responsibilities of a NWS Lead Forecaster (11:00)
- Official "Cloud Warriors" book website (20:45)
- How early science/technology developed and shaped societies (22:30)
- Shift at the NWS forecast office in Caribou, Maine in the 60s/modern parallels (28:00)
- What is a NWS WFO and what does it do? (29:45)
- Focusing on public service in journalism (44:30)
- Weather and its ability to be a great unifier (57:30)
- 2019 Beauregard/Lee County tornado research (01:16:00)
- Revolutions in weather forecasting (01:25:30)
- Fighting conspiracy theories and misinformation (01:34:30)
- The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:44:40)
- This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:46:45)
- E-Mail Segment (No segment this week - stay tuned!)
- and more!
Web Sites from Episode 1017:
"Cloud Warriors" by Thomas E Weber
Picks of the Week:
John Banghoff - "The Weather Gods Curse The Gettysburg Campaign" by Jon Nese Jeffrey J. Harding
James Aydelott - Grand Canyon National Park
James Aydelott - Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
Jen Narramore - PA Storm Trackerz
Rick Smith - Out
Troy Kimmel - Out
Kim Klockow-McClain - NOAA nominee Neil Jacobs testifies at confirmation hearing amid deadly Texas floods
John Gordon - Pulse and Multicell Storms Conceptual Model
Bill Murray - Foghorn
James Spann - Sarah Marsh Obituary
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.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist
It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com