Our Guest WeatherBrain for this week's episode is Melissa Marcelloni, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Brownsville, Texas. Melissa has worked a variety of high-impact events, including hurricanes, microbursts, and flooding, and she's also an experienced storm chaser. Before joining the NWS, she served as a catastrophe claim specialist, giving her a unique perspective on the intersection of meteorology, disaster impacts, and community recovery. Melissa, welcome to WeatherBrains!

Tonight's Guest Panelist is Chris White — a proud Virginia Tech alumnus and a retired federal government meteorologist. He's well-known in the weather community as a storm chaser for @WDBJ7Weather and @MLseverewxcon, where he also serves as founder and coordinator. In addition, Chris is a dedicated weather blogger, sharing his passion for severe weather with the public and the storm chasing community. Chris, thanks for joining us tonight.

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: [email protected].

• Hot air balloons and meteorology (16:00)
• Melissa's educational journey (18:00)
• Diversification is key (21:30)
• Melissa's transition from working in insurance into the NWS (24:00)
• Defining core partners in the aftermath of major weather disasters (31:00)
• Historical hurricanes (34:30)
• Outreach efforts to the community in order to help them prepare for major weather events (36:30)
• Toughest weather to forecast in south Texas/Airmass thunderstorms (41:00)
• Issues with microbursts in south Texas (43:30)
• Challenges with rip current risk, and what those in the community should/shouldn't do to mitigate risk (49:00)
• Storm chasing experiences and notable storms (51:30)
• Frustrating storm chasing days (01:05:00)
• National Storm Chasers Summit (01:08:00)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:14:20)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (01:17:15)
• E-Mail Segment (01:18:15)
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 1026:

Alabama Weather Network

Chris White on X

Melissa Marcelloni on Instagram

Picks of the Week:

Melissa Marcelloni - Tornadoes destroy multiple homes in Utah

Chris White - Sterling, VA September 17th, 2004 tornadoes

James Aydelott - An incredible tornado intercept in Caragabal, NSW, Australia

Jen Narramore - Aaron Rigsby on X: Tornado video in Dakotas

Rick Smith - Out

Troy Kimmel - Helene in Southern Appalachia story map

Kim Klockow-McClain - Foghorn

John Gordon - Mark Gray on X: Saturday splashes at sunset in Bonavista NL

John Gordon - Gord Follett Photography on X: Unique coastline photo near Madrock Bay Roberts Newfoundland

Bill Murray - Foghorn

James Spann - PolarWx

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.