Four Special Weather Events You Won’t Want to Miss This Weekend

There are four very special weather events that you will not want to miss this weekend in Birmingham. Two you have been hearing about, and two that are new on the agenda. With Alabama and Auburn playing late afternoon games, as well as a fine weather forecast, nothing will stand in your way of hitting the ones that strike your fancy.

FRIDAY EVENING
Meet and Greet with Sean Casey at McWane

Enjoy a night out at McWane Science Center with Sean Casey of Discovery Channel’s hit series Storm Chasers and the IMAX® film Tornado Alley. Hang out with Sean on the plaza and enjoy food, drinks, music and take your picture with the TIV (Tornado Intercept Vehicle). One lucky ticket holder will win the chance to take a ride around downtown in the TIV. Cap the night off in McWane’s IMAX® Theater with a screening of Tornado Alley, introduced by Casey himself. Tickets include heavy hors d’oeuvres, IMAX® admission and one drink ticket. Call (205) 714-8414 to buy tickets.

SATURDAY MORNING
General Aviation Weather Safety Training Seminar at Southern Museum of Flight: 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Terry Lankford of the NWA Aviation Meteorology Committee is putting together the annual Aviation Weather Safety Seminar to be held in conjunction with the NWA Annual Meeting in Birmingham on Saturday, October 15, 2011 from 10am until 1pm at the Southern Museum of Flight 4342 73^rd St. N. Birmingham, Alabama. The National Weather Association, with the Birmingham National Weather Service (NWS) Forecast Office and the FAA’s Aviation Safety Program, will present the seminar. It is designed to help General Aviation pilots better understand and apply weather to their flying activities.

Presenters include Mary Keiser and Terry Lankford. Mary is an operational forecaster with the Birmingham NWS office. She will discuss local weather issues in the Birmingham areas and Southeast U.S. and Terminal Aerodrome Forecasts. Terry Lankford is a retired FSS pilot weather briefer and author of several books on aviation weather issues. He will be presenting Winter Weather Patterns and Hazards in the Eastern U.S. At the conclusion of the program participants will be able to ask questions on aviation weather issues.

SATURDAY AFTERNOON
Special Q&A With Doppler Radar Legend Don Burgess at McWane

One of the lead scientists featured in the Tornado Alley IMAX movie, Donald Burgess, will be at the McWane Science Center, and he’ll be participating in an event intended to benefit Hands On Birmingham and tornado recovery efforts in the region. Don is very well-known in the weather community, and in addition to an extensive career in research, he was a PI in the VORTEX2 research initiative documented in Tornado Alley.

Don will give a special presentation at the McWane Science Center at 2:30 pm on Saturday. He’ll give a short talk on the VORTEX2 research program, and will be available for question and answer afterwards—the event should be very exciting for anyone interested in severe storms research, science careers, the experience of storm chasing, etc.

Attendees will need to buy a discounted admission ticket to the science center ($5 off is being offered for WeatherFest) and in addition, they are asked to help support hazard preparedness efforts by purchasing a weather radio or flashlight (to be distributed to families in need) or to make a cash contribution to Hands On Birmingham. We’d love your help in getting the word out about this event since it benefits a great cause!

SATURDAY MORNING/AFTERNOON
Of course, the main event of the weekend for us weather folks is the Southeast’s largest public weatherfest, to be held from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. on the plaza, in the lobby and in the Regions Room at the McWane Center. The WeatherFest events will be free and there will be a $5 discount for admission to the Museum.

There will be activities, games and presentations for all ages. Try a rainfall race! Or let’s the kids pin the eye on a hurricane. Can you estimate tea cup sized hail?

Want to be a meteorologist? There will be two chances to make your personal weather tape, one with our very own Ashley Brand! Meet TV mets from all four Birmingham stations.

There will be talks about storm safety and safe rooms and videos about the April 27th outbreak. There will be a Mobile Doppler, the TIV2 from Storm Chasers and several other pieces of large equipment. Nick Walker from The Weather Channel will be singing kids songs from his CD and giving them for free with a donation to the Governors’ Tornado Relief Fund.

There will be lots of people downtown Saturday morning with the Susan G. Komen Race, which will make it all the more fun. Run or walk, then head back to McWane!

Category: Hodgepodge