Northwest Weather Workshop 2023
Sponsored by the NOAA/NWS, the University of Washington, and the Seattle and Portland Chapters of the American Meteorological Society. Online.
Friday, May 12, 2023
1:00-1:10 PM Welcome and Meeting Details
Special Presentation
Session 1: Heavy precipitation and atmospheric rivers over the West Coast
1:10-1:30 Summary of west coast atmospheric rivers of 2022/23F. Martin Ralph Director, Center
for Western Weather and Water Extremes (CW3E) - UC San Diego
1:30-1:45 The Great West Coast floods of 1861-62 compared to last winter – what’s the
difference? Larry Schick Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes (CW3E)
1:45-2:00 Usage of Satellite data to detect heavy precipitation and flooding events in British
Columbia and California. William Straka III, CIMSS/NOAA/LEO
2:00-2:15 PNW Water Year Impacts Assessments. Karin Bumbaco and Crystal Raymond,
Office of the Washington State Climatologist, CICOES, University of Washington
2:15-2:30 Development of an Impact Based Storm Rating Scale for Decision Making in a Warming World: Demonstration using Major Extratropical Cyclone-Atmospheric River Storms between 2020-2023. Melinda M Brugman, Alex Cannon and the ARkSuperStorm team
2:30-2:45 Coastal Flooding in Western Washington and the December 2022 event.
Kirby Cook, Science and Operations Officer
2:45-3:00 What we have learned from the Olympic Mountains Experiment (OLYMPEX) about precipitation processes in complex terrain. Lynn McMurdie, University of Washington
3:00-3:30 PM Refreshment Break
Session 2: Snow and Avalanche Forecasting
3:30-3:45 The Meteorology of Avalanche Forecasting. Dallas Glass
Deputy Director- Avalanche Forecaster, Northwest Avalanche Center
3:45-4:00 Impact-Based Decision Support Service Ahead of Record-Breaking Pacific Northwest Cascade Snowfall, Charlotte Dewey, National Weather Service, Spokane, Washington
4:00-4:15 The Surprise Portland Snowfall of Feb 22...What did Satellite Products and
Analysis Show. Sheldon Kusselson, Cooperative Institute for Research of the Atmosphere (CIRA)/Colorado State University
Session 3: Wildfire Forecasting and Smoke
4:15-4:30 Tracking wildfire smoke with lidar-ceilometers. Phil Swartzendruber, Puget Sound Clean Air Agency
4:30-4:45 Update on our Geostationary GOES-R Capabilities for Tracking Fires and Smoke. Mike Stavish, Science and Operations Officer, WFO Medford
4:45-5:00 Research Support for Crisis Strategy Prescribed Burns. Marlin Martine, Brian Potter, Andy Chiodi, Joel Dubowy, Aaron Rowe, Vaughn Cork, Steve Bodnar, Ernesto Alvarado Sim Larkin, Susan O'Neill, Tony Bova
6:00-9:00 Workshop Banquet at Ivar’s Salmon House, Seattle
Banquet Talk: Mathew Dehr, Meteorologist, DNR
Washington's Outlier Wildfire Seasons and Events: A climate and weather perspective.
6:00-7:00 PM Icebreaker – no host bar
7:00-8:00 Buffet Dinner
7:45-8:30 Presentation
Saturday, May 13, 2023
9:00-9:10AM Welcome
Special Presentation
9:10-9:25 Future Directions of the American Meteorological Society. Dr. Brad Colman, President, American Meteorological Society
Session 4: Northwest Climate and Weather
9:25-9:40 Extreme Weather Events in WA State: Variations and Trends. Nick Bond and Karin
Bumbaco. Office of the Washington State Climatologist, CICOES, University of Washington
9:40- 9:55 Observed and simulated characteristics of down-valley flow within stratiform
precipitation over the Olympic Peninsula. Robert Conrick, Joe Boomgard-Zagrodnik (presenter), Lynn McMurdie
9:55-10:10 Why was the June 2021 Heatwave so Severe? Cliff Mass, David Ovens, Robert
Conrick, and John Christy.
10:10-10:25 Future Climate Simulations for the Salish Sea Using Dynamically Downscaled
Atmospheric Projections/ Eva Gnegy. UBC - Dept. of Atmos Science1; Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO)2
10:25-10:55 Refreshment Break
10:55-11:10 Regional Climate Modeling. Eric Salathe, UW Bothell
11:10-11:25 A recap of the Feb 22, 2023 Portland Snowstorm. Tyler Kranz, Lead Meteorologist, NWS Portland
Session 5: Regional weather prediction and communication
11:25-11:45 The UW Dawgcast. Shannon O'Donnell, KOMO TV and UW
11:45-12:00 Update on the Northwest WRF Modeling System. David Ovens and Cliff Mass
12:00-1:00 PM Lunch
1:00-1:15 Managing a Weather Social Media Site, Justin Shaw, SeattleWeatherBlog
1:15- 1:30 National Weather Service Social Media Outreach. Logan Johnson, MIC, and Jake DeFlitch, NWS Seattle
1:30-1:45 Weather Support at Alaska Airlines. Michael Snyder, Alaska Airlines
1:45-2:00 The High-Amplitude Gravity/Wind Event of May 2, 2013. Anthony Edwards,
Atmospheric Sciences, University of Washington
2:00-2:15 Rotating Convection Near Terrain. Steve Businger and Terrence J. Corrigan Jr., University of Hawaii.
2:15-2:30 PM. Video Weather Highlights, 2022-2023. Greg Johnson, Skunk Bay Weather
