Biology

The Western Kentucky University meteorology program’s 15^th annual Field Methods in Severe Weather Analysis and Forecasting course, known as the WKU Storm Chase, will begin Tuesday (May 21).

“With nearly a week out from departure, the anticipation for the severe weather pattern continues to build,” University Meteorologist Josh Durkee said. “We have currently observed an above-average severe weather season and we feel this will carry into the travel portion of our trip, offering our students a host of opportunities to practice forecasting and documenting severe storms, while also learning how to incorporate these forecasts into emergency planning for events.”

Eight students will forecast and document severe storms during the two-week trip to the Great Plains. Since the course was launched in 2010, Dr. Durkee said WKU groups have visited 20 states and traveled a total of 104,721 miles (an average trip distance of 7,046 miles) or 4.2 trips around the equator.

“I am especially excited this year since we secured a $15,000 donation from the Jessie Ball duPont Fund to, for the first time ever for this course, provide equitable opportunity for students seeking this high-impact experiential learning opportunity,” he said. “These types of learning experiences cost extra money for travel and technology requirements and this year we were able to even the application playing field for all students, regardless of financial limitations. Ultimately, these students can carry this experience back to WKU as they train for severe weather emergencies in the WKU Disaster Science Operations Center.”

Students participating in the May 21-June 4 trip are: Michael Quire of Bowling Green, graduate student in Homeland Security Sciences; Luke Ferguson of Ironton, Ohio, a senior Meteorology major with Geographic Information Science (GIS) certificate; Thomas Payette of Louisville, a senior Meteorology major with GIS certificate; Josh Brown of Fairborn, Ohio, a senior Meteorology major with GIS certificate; Jake Disinger of Boonville, Indiana, a senior Meteorology major with Emergency Management Disaster Science (EMDS) and GIS certificates; Harmony Guercio of Knoxville, Tennessee, a senior Meteorology major with EMDS and GIS certificates; Kaylie Bonifer of French Lick, Indiana, a senior Meteorology major with EMDS and GIS certificates; and Samantha Taylor of Knoxville, Tennessee, a senior Meteorology major with EMDS and GIS certificates.

Elements of the class are utilized to teach students in the Homeland Security Science and Emergency Management Disaster Science programs about severe weather emergencies and applications for event planning, mitigation, and response. This year is the fourth for the virtual EMDS course, which was developed during the COVID pandemic. Five undergraduate and nine graduate students will participate in the EMDS course.

For more about the 2024 Storm Chase, follow @WKUstormchase on Twitter/X.

Contact: Josh Durkee, joshua.durkee@wku.edu

• More: Follow WKU Disaster Science Operations Center (DSOC) at @WKUDisasterSci

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Western Kentucky University prides itself on positioning its students, faculty and staff for long term success. As a student-centered, applied research university, WKU helps students expand on classroom learning by integrating education with real-world applications in the communities we serve. Our hilltop campus is located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, which was recently named by Reader’s Digest as one of the nicest towns in America, just an hour’s drive from Nashville, Tennessee.