Across the Sky

During a devastating tornado outbreak in Mississippi March 2023, meteorologist Matt Laubhan guided viewers through the nighttime storms.

On this episode of Across the Sky, he talks about the challenges of encouraging people to get to safer locations, the spontaneous prayer that he delivered during live coverage, and the mental health of those that survive severe weather. 

Related episodes

About the Across the Sky podcast

The weekly weather podcast is hosted on a rotation by the Lee Weather team:

Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, N.J., and Sean Sublette of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

April showers bring May flowers. But when those sprinkles turn into intense downpours, water levels can rise and bring flash flooding.

University of Michigan engineering professor Valeriy Ivanov nearly drowned while crossing a flood-swollen river, and in today's episode he talks about how this motivated his work: shortening the time to generate flooding forecasts and translating them into more timely and accurate warnings.

About the Across the Sky podcast

The weekly weather podcast is hosted on a rotation by the Lee Weather team:

Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, N.J., and Sean Sublette of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Watches and warnings are nothing new for the National Weather Service, but Liz Leitman, a Mesoscale Forecaster at the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma, made history in February when she became the first woman to issue either a severe thunderstorm or tornado watch.

Leitman talks with our meteorologists about the historic moment, how she became interested in the weather, and the importance of bringing more women into the field.

About the Across the Sky podcast

The weekly weather podcast is hosted on a rotation by the Lee Weather team:

Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, N.J., and Sean Sublette of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the rest of the meteorologists away this week, Sean Sublette talks with Jessica Whitehead, Executive Director of the Old Dominion University Institute for Coastal Adaptation and Resilience, to discuss some of the hidden and subtle ways global warming is sneaking up on us. Hotter weather is just the tip of the iceberg.

About the Across the Sky podcast

The weekly weather podcast is hosted on a rotation by the Lee Weather team:

Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, N.J., and Sean Sublette of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While some parts of the country keep experiencing snow and cold weather, particularly in the Midwest, spring is ahead of schedule in other regions.

Theresa Crimmins of the USA National Phenology Network talks about how far ahead the Southeast is of normal spring and discusses the complex relationship between temperatures, pollen, and blooms. She also explains how you can become a citizen scientist to help strengthen their database.

Crimmins is the show's first repeat guest and you can listen to her previous appearance on Across the Sky here: Spring blooms and allergies with Dr. Theresa Crimmins

About the Across the Sky podcast

The weekly weather podcast is hosted on a rotation by the Lee Weather team:

Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, N.J., and Sean Sublette of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Meteorological spring is here and with that comes turbulent weather as snowstorms give way to damaging thunderstorms. Much of the country has gotten an early start to the severe weather season, with more than 200 tornadoes reported since the first of the year.

DaNa Carlis, the Director of the NOAA National Severe Storms Laboratory, is our guest this week. He talks about the mission of his team and what they do to improve our understanding of severe storms and the accuracy of warnings.

Next week we welcome back our first repeat guest, Theresa Crimmins, Director for the USA National Phenology Network. You can listen to her first appearance on Across the Sky here: Spring blooms and allergies with Dr. Theresa Crimmins

About the Across the Sky podcast

The weekly weather podcast is hosted on a rotation by the Lee Weather team:

Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, N.J., and Sean Sublette of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Maybe you run a business and you're trying to budget for snow removal before winter. Or perhaps your business is facing a lawsuit after someone slips on the ice.

This is where forensic meteorology comes into play. Forensic meteorologist Sherilyn Patrick, Director of Forensic Services for WeatherWorks in Hackettstown, New Jersey, is our guest on this week's episode. Patrick talks about her job, the differences between what she does and that of a traditional meteorologist and examples of forensic meteorology. 

About the Across the Sky podcast

The weekly weather podcast is hosted on a rotation by the Lee Weather team:

Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, N.J., and Sean Sublette of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Baseball is back with the return of spring training, and this week our hosts talk with Paul Gross, a recently retired broadcast meteorologist who is a weather consultant for the Detroit Tigers.

They discuss how weather impacts baseball, from lightning safety rules to the precise timing of a rain forecast, including a dramatic situation in a game between the Tigers and Red Sox. Paul also shared a unique story from his consulting during the 2005 MLB All-Star Game.

About the Across the Sky podcast

The weekly weather podcast is hosted on a rotation by the Lee Weather team:

Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, N.J., and Sean Sublette of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia.

Chapters:

(0:00:02) - Advising Sports Teams on Weather Conditions
(0:05:36) - Forecasting Weather for a Baseball Team
(0:10:42) - Weather and Sports
(0:18:16) - The Benefits of Advanced Weather Technology
(0:23:34) - Weather's Impact on Sports Decisions
(0:30:48) - Weather Consideration in Major League Baseball

Chapter Summaries:

(0:00:02) - Advising Sports Teams on Weather Conditions (6 Minutes)
Across the Sky', a national Lee Enterprises weather podcast, is hosted by meteorologists Sean Sublette in Richmond, Joe Martucci in Atlantic City and Matt Holiner in Chicago. This episode discusses the winter storms that have recently been plaguing the Midwest, and how the weather in the upcoming weeks is expected to be mild with snow expected to return next week. They also bring on a guest, Paul Gross, a recently retired broadcast meteorologist who has been consulting for the Detroit Tigers and other big-name sports teams for a while now.

(0:05:36) - Forecasting Weather for a Baseball Team (5 Minutes)
The conversation focuses on the protocols for forecasting lightning and calling or pausing a game as a result. It is explained that the safety of the players and the field conditions must be taken into account, as well as the safety of everyone in the stadium. An example is given of a situation which occurred during a game, when a severe thunderstorm was taking a direct bead on the ballpark and the umpire refused to stop the game. A discussion follows on the protocols for lightning and how they have changed over the years, with insight from the Paul's experience advising the Tigers.

(0:10:42) - Weather and Sports (8 Minutes)
This chapter of the Across the Sky podcast covers the significance of lightning and how it can be a major weather killer, yet often flies under the radar due to lack of media coverage. The conversation then transitions to the importance of time when it comes to the weather in relation to sports games and the preparation that goes into playing a game. It is noted that the decision to start the game is often up to the home team general manager. The conversation then delves into a situation in which the Detroit Tigers had a game in Boston, but with a massive rain area approaching the game was started despite the fact that it was unlikely to be completed.

(0:18:16) - The Benefits of Advanced Weather Technology (5 Minutes)
This conversation is about a unique experience involving the weather at the 2005 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. Paul Gross recounts how, as a season ticket holder, he and his family had purchased tickets for the game, and a cousin from Chicago had come in to join them. The weather forecast was mostly dry, but the commissioner of baseball, who was a bit of a nervous type when it came to the weather, asked the speaker to stay with him during the game. As the game progressed, the speaker was able to track a few showers on radar.

(0:23:34) - Weather's Impact on Sports Decisions (7 Minutes)
The conversation focuses on weather's impact on the game of baseball, particularly the flight of the ball in different weather conditions. The speaker talks about his experience with Michigan football and a game they played in Colorado where they were at risk of being affected by a tropical storm. They also discuss the Detroit Lions and their playing both inside and outside and the impact of weather on their games and practices. The speaker talks about the high stakes of the information he provides and how it can affect the outcome of games. Lastly, they talk about whether decision makers ever ask the speaker what he would do in a high stakes situation'

(0:30:48) - Weather Consideration in Major League Baseball (12 Minutes)
Matt Holiner shared his experience of working as a meteorologist for the Cincinnati Reds and his comparison of the different mentalities between football and baseball when it comes to forecasting weather. Matt discussed how teams will wait for two or three hours until they make the call to cancel a game due to inclement weather and how he had to communicate with the grounds crew and operations manager but not the players. He also shared that football has a higher threshold for what they will tolerate weather-wise and will play in almost any condition, while baseball has a lower threshold and will typically only play if the field is not deemed dangerous.

Shownotes generated by Podium.page.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The NFL season just wrapped with Sunday's Super Bowl LVII in Arizona, and while the weather didn't come into play with the game played in a domed stadium, our guest this week talks about what it's like covering sporting events and the challenges of weather.

Kris Budden is a reporter for ESPN and covered San Diego Padres games before moving to her current role covering college football and basketball. She shares several stories, including the problems that rain brings for teams and broadcasters, how lightning factors into coverage, and some travel challenges getting to and from games.

The meteorologists also share their most memorable weather stories from sporting events they attended. This episode was recorded three days before the Super Bowl, so the team wraps things up by sharing their predictions. You as listeners can now hear how well those have aged...

About the Across the Sky podcast

The weekly weather podcast is hosted on a rotation by the Lee Weather team:

Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, N.J., and Sean Sublette of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're still in the middle of winter and much of the nation continues to endure snow, ice and severe cold. So the meteorologists thought back to when they were kids and debated various scenarios that could lead to either a partial or canceled school day.

Would you rather have a delayed opening or early dismissal? Or which is better: no school on a Friday or a Monday? 

TAKE OUR POLLS! Follow this link to weigh in with your picks!

Let us know your thoughts! Send comments to [email protected] and we'll share your thoughts in a future episode.

About the Across the Sky podcast

The weekly weather podcast is hosted on a rotation by the Lee Weather team:

Matt Holiner of Lee Enterprises' Midwest group in Chicago, Kirsten Lang of the Tulsa World in Oklahoma, Joe Martucci of the Press of Atlantic City, N.J., and Sean Sublette of the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Virginia.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.