Weather on the Air: A History of Broadcast Meteorology pdf

Robert Henson is a weather and climate science writer at Weather Underground (part of The Weather Company, an IBM Business) and coauthor of WU’s Category 6 news site, where he covers breaking weather and climate news and emerging research. From 1990 through 2015, he was a science writer at the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, where he produced many hundreds of articles on UCAR/NCAR research and served as managing editor for several UCAR annual reports, including “UCAR at 40” and “UCAR at 50,” and for the newsletters UCAR Quarterly and UCAR Magazine. While at UCAR, Henson also contributed to a number of public exhibits and helped develop the Walter Orr Roberts Weather Trail, the first weather-oriented nature trail in North America. Henson received his B.A. degree in meteorology and psychology from Rice University and an M.A. in journalism with a focus in meteorology from the University of Oklahoma. He participated in lightning research at the National Severe Storms Laboratory and writes often on severe weather.

Weather on the Air: A History of Broadcast Meteorology pdf by Robert Henson

From low humor to high drama, TV weather reporting has encompassed an enormous range of styles and approaches, triggering chuckles, infuriating the masses, and at times even saving lives. In Weather on the Air,meteorologist and science journalist Robert Henson covers it all—the people, technology, science, and show business that combine to deliver the weather to the public each day. The first comprehensive history of its kind, Weather on the Air explores the many forces that have shaped weather broadcasts over the years, including the long-term drive to professionalize weathercasting, the complex relations between government and private forecasters, and the effects of climate-change science and the Internet on today’s broadcasts. Dozens of photos and anecdotes accompany Henson’s more than two decades of research to document the evolution of weathercasts, from their primitive beginnings on the radio to the high-gloss, graphics-laden segments we watch on television every morning. This engaging study will be an invaluable tool for students of broadcast meteorology and mass communication and an entertaining read for anyone fascinated by the public face of weather.