SPECIAL NAMED SYMPOSIA - Atlas Symposium, in honor of David Atlas's tremendous contributions in weather radar, and A Half Century of Progress in Meteorology: The Richard Reed Symposium, which will honor Richard Reed for his outstanding contributions to the understanding of synoptic weather systems.

The Atlas Symposium: A Tribute to David Atlas (Link to the Program) — David Atlas has been a leader in the field of meteorology for six decades, beginning in the 1940s and continuing to the present. Atlas is perhaps best known for his research in the field of Radar Meteorology, in which he was among a handful of pioneers and prime movers in the World War II years, leading to the installation of operational weather radars in the 1950s. His research has spanned the field and has included precipitation measurements, Doppler measurements of air motion, clear-air observations using ultra sensitive radars, and observations from space. His research has been relevant to weather and climate and has ranged from the basic to highly applied. Other dimensions to Atlas' career are those of inventor, educator at the University of Chicago, laboratory director at The Air Force Cambridge Research Laboratory, division director at The National Center for Atmospheric Research, and laboratory director at the Goddard Laboratory for Atmospheric Science. He has served the AMS in many capacities, including the position of President. In recognition of his accomplishments, Atlas has received the AMS' Meisinger, Charney, and Rossby awards and has recently been named an Honorary Member of the Society. He is also a member of the the National Academy of Engineering. Dave Atlas has had a profound influence on meteorology in general through his research and through the people with whom he has worked and has touched as a mentor.

The AMS is planning a special banquet to honor Dave's career on Monday, 14 January at 7:30 P.M. At the banquet, several of Dave's colleagues and friends will say a few words, but the highlight of the banquet will be a talk from Dave Atlas, on topics of his choice. All are invited to attend. The Dave Atlas Banquet ticket is not included in the conference registration package. To attend this banquet, we urge you to preregister and purchase your banquet ticket at that time. We will have a very limited number of tickets available to purchase on site.

In accordance with Dave Atlas' wishes, this symposium will focus on the state of the field of radar meteorology and its future. Lectures will cover the science and technology as well as applications and education. Guest lecturers include senior luminaries as well as rising stars. A closing panel discussion will focus on the future. Active audience participation is a given, since Dave Atlas will be in the audience.

A Half Century of Progress in Meteorology: The Richard Reed Symposium (Link to the Program) — On the occasion of the 2002 AMS Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida, a special one-day symposium will be held to celebrate the extraordinary scientific career and achievements of Richard J. Reed. A major theme will be the broad scope and significant impact of a half century of Richard Reed's research, spanning virtually the entire field of meteorologyCfrom the Tropics to the Arctic, from the boundary layer to the mesosphere, from turbulence to planetary-scale motions, and from fog to explosive cyclogenesis. With seemingly boundless (and contagious) energy and enthusiasm, Reed has tackled many problems across this broad spectrum, and his unique insight in the interpretation of observations has led to fundamental discoveries that have shaped the course of the science in many of these areas.

The symposium will be held on Tuesday, 15 January, and consist of a day-long series of invited papers, followed by an evening banquet. Session topics include upper-level fronts and the tropopause, tropopause folds, stratosphericBtropospheric exchange, quasi-biennial oscillation, stratospheric sudden warmings, atmospheric tides, numerical weather prediction, tropical easterly waves, GARP planning, polar lows, extratropical cyclones, and mesoscale circulations. Contributions by Richard Reed will be reviewed by the invited speakers and updates will be given on the status of research in each of these areas. For more information about Richard Reed visit www.atmos.washington.edu/gcg/Reed

THE SECOND PRESIDENTIAL POLICY FORUM: Society and the Society: What can the American Meteorological Society do to Better Foster Scientific Services for Society's Needs?

The Second Presidential Policy Forum will be held on Wednesday, 16 January. The entire morning will be devoted to a plenary session forum entitled, "Society and The Society: What can the American Meteorological Society do to Better Foster Scientific Services for Society's Needs?" The forum will focus on the relationship between the AMS and society in general. In this age, where there is increasing attention devoted to societal benefits, it is obvious that the AMS should reflect on how we can better serve society. The meteorological and associated sciences have a great deal to offer in the way of information and services to improve the quality and sustainability of life. It is up to the AMS to develop better ways to facilitate the provision of those services to the larger society. The forum is designed to expand AMS members' knowledge of the types of services that can better serve the needs of the larger society as well as the role of the AMS in facilitating services to provide atmospheric information for the betterment of society. There will be two panel discussions.

One panel will deal with a discussion of the societal needs for atmospheric science services from the perspective of the larger society. It will consist of a policy maker from the U.S. Congress, a corporate executive, a nationally prominent communications expert, and a senior representative from the non-atmospheric portion of academia. The second panel will discuss present and future AMS services and the best ways to facilitate provision of these services to society. It will include representatives from the atmospheric public and private sectors, a senior representative from the atmospheric science academic community, and a meteorological communicator.

For further information or suggestions please contact Richard Greenfield or Robert J. Serafin

• Short Course on Neural Network Applications to Environmental Sciences
  
  
• Short Course on the Fundamentals of Doppler and Polarimetric Weather Radar
  
  
• Short Course on Verification of Climate Forecasts
  
  
• Short Course on Land-Surface-Climate Interaction
  
  
• Short Course on QPF and QPE: Quantitative Precipitation Forecasting and Quantitative Precipitation Estimation
  
  
• Weather Entrepreneur Workshop
  
  

Short Course on Neural Network Applications to Environmental Sciences, 12—13 January 2002 - is sponsored by the American Meteorological Society and organized by the AMS Committee on Artificial Intelligence Applications to Environmental Science.

The course starts with the neural network (NN) tutorial, which does not require any prior familiarity with the technique. Its major topics include: NN components, architectures, training, relationship to statistics, and regression technique. Numerous generic environmental NN applications will be introduced and discussed, many of which are closely related to the topic of this AMS meeting. Topics include NN applications for intelligent processing of observations, nonlinear multivariate data analysis, fast direct assimilation of satellite data, accurate retrieving geophysical information from satellite data, prediction, scene classification, discrimination between clouds and snow in satellite imagery, improving computational efficiency of numerical models, nonlinear time series analysis, data fusion, and so on. Many practical NN solutions developed and implemented by instructors for atmospheric and oceanic applications will be introduced. A practical approach to development of NN applications will be outlined. Some applications involving fuzzy logic will also be discussed. Computer demonstrations will enhance and illustrate the course. Interactive sessions will help students communicate closely with instructors and obtain advice about applications of NN to various projects.

For further information, please contact Vladimir Krasnopolsky, Environmental Modeling Center, NWS/NCEP/NOAA (SAIC), 5200 Auth Rd., Camp Spring, MD 20746 (tel. 301-763-8000 ext. 7262; fax: 301-763-8545; e-mail: kvladimir@ncep.noaa.gov).

Short Course on the Fundamentals of Doppler and Polarimetric Weather Radar, 12—13 January 2002 - is being sponsored by the American Meteorological Society and organized by the AMS Committee on Measurements.

This course reviews Doppler weather radar principles, its application to the observation of weather, and the quantitative measurement of meteorological parameters. The goal of this course is to develop an understanding of the theory, operation, and applications of meteorological radars. Focus is on meteorological phenomena, their radar signatures, and quantitative measurement of weather parameters. Extensive examples of weather phenomena are shown together with their radar signatures. The latest advances in polarimetric Doppler weather radar technology are presented. The principals of clear air observation and fair weather phenomena will be discussed. This course is based on the textbook, Doppler Radar and Weather Observations.

Who should attend? Meteorologists, weather forecasters, physicists, engineers, and other professionals who need to understand applications of Doppler weather radar. Although there is no specific prerequisite for this course, participants should have an understanding of elementary physics and mathematics.

What will you learn by taking this course? 1) The principles of weather radar: history of radar development, electromagnetic waves, polarization, normal and anomalous propagation, pulsed-Doppler radar, signals received from point and distributed scatterers, attenuation due to stormy and fair weather, back scatter and attenuation cross sections, hydrometeor size distributions, the radar equation, representations of echoes from moving and stationary scatterers, radar limitations (e.g., range and velocity ambiguities). 2) Weather signals: signal statistics, echo coherency, the weather radar equation, angular and range weighting functions, resolution volume, the reflectivity factor, correlation of echoes in range and time. 3) Doppler spectra of weather signals: discrete Fourier transform and window functions, Doppler spectra of weather echoes, relation between wind, reflectivity, and the Doppler spectrum, examples of Doppler spectra associated with various weather phenomena (e.g., tornadoes). 4) Weather signal processing: spectral moments, estimation of reflectivity using range and time averaging, autocovariance and spectral processing to estimate mean Doppler velocity and spectrum width, signal processing for coherent polarimetric radar, performance of the estimators, examples of two-dimensional fields of reflectivity factors, radial velocity, and turbulence. 5) Considerations in the observation of weather: spectrum width, wind shear and turbulence, antenna sidelobes, ground and sea clutter, techniques to extend unambiguous range and velocity, the effective width of a scanning beam, thunderstorm structure, wind estimation with two Doppler radars, severe local storms, mesoscale convective systems, and hurricanes. 6) Precipitation measurements: single parameter techniques (e.g., using reflectivity factor Z or specific differential phase KDP) to estimate rain rate R; relations among Z, R, and liquid water content, accuracy of rain measurements, two-parameter techniques to estimate rainfall, principles of radar polarimetry, improvements of rain measurements and identification of hail with polarimetric radar. 7) Observation of winds, storms, and related phenomena: visual depiction of storm phenomena (e.g., tornadoes, microbursts) and their radar signatures, wind field estimation using single Doppler radar, weather hazards to aviation. 8) Observations of fair weather: Bragg scatter from irregularities in temperature and humidity; observations of wind, buoyancy waves (i.e., undular bores, solitary waves, etc.), and turbulence in clear air. 9) WSR-88D and TDWR applications: NEXRAD and TDWR specifications and applications, modes of operations, examples of displays and products, automatic detection of hazardous weather.

For further Information, contact the Instructors, Dusan S. Zrniƒ (e-mail: zrnic@nssl.noaa.edu) or Richard J. Doviak (e-mail: Dick.Doviak@nssl.noaa.gov) at NOAA/NSSL and University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK.

Short Course on Verification of Climate Forecasts, 13 January 2002 - is being sponsored by the American Meteorological Society and organized by the AMS Committee on Probability and Statistics.

The short course will emphasize the newest methods for diagnostic verification of climate probability forecasts (from week two to multiseasonal that go beyond the limits of deterministic predictability), especially those based on ensemble methods, but also include segments on categorical forecasts and field verification. The short course will also cover, where appropriate, topics on signal detection theory and decision-model analysis of multimodel ensemble integrations.

This short course is intended for those who make climate predictions experimentally (including hindcasts) in the laboratory or operationally. The course is particularly timely because climate predictions are receiving increasing attention by decision-makers and the public. A luncheon will be provided.

For further information, contact Robert E. Livezey, (tel: 301-713-1867, extension 182; e-mail: Bob.Livezey@noaa.gov)

Short Course on Land-Surface-Climate Interaction, 13 January 2002 - is being sponsored by the American Meteorological Society.

Land-surface-climate interaction is a new scientific field, and the results in this field have significant scientific implications. This course intends to present introductory knowledge for students and scientists who desire an introduction to the basic concepts and areas of studies in this field. The lectures include: introduction of the development of land surfaceBclimate interaction studies during the past two decades; land surface modeling (main components in a land surface model); land-atmosphere coupling (the methodologies and principles of landBatmosphere coupling); photosynthesis processes and CO2 flux transfer; dynamic vegetation modeling; development and application of remotely sensed data; application of land surface parameterizations in climate studies; and a tutorial class with PCs for students to practice using a land surface model.

The short course includes a luncheon and will be taught by Peter Cox (Met Office), Forrest Hall (NASA/GSFC), Randy Koster (NASA/GSFC), Yongkang Xue (UCLA) and others.

For further information, please contact Yongkang Xue (e-mail: yxue@geog.ucla.edu) or Randy Koster (e-mail: koster@janus.gsfc.nasa.gov).

Short Course on QPF and QPE: Quantitative Precipitation Forecasting and Quantitative Precipitation Estimation, 13 January 2002 - is being sponsored by the American Meteorological Society and organized by the AMS Committee on Hydrology.

The course will focus on procedures for quantitative precipitation forecasting (QPF) and quantitative precipitation estimation (QPE) will be presented and illustrated through case studies. The QPE presentation will focus on analyses of recent heavy rainfall events. The QPE presentation will include a presentation of operation rainfall estimation algorithms, case study examples, and discussion of future QPE opportunities resulting from polarimetric upgrades of the WSR-88D radar network.

Who should attend? The course will be geared toward operational forecasters, those in the research community, and students.

For further information, please contact Richard A. Fulton, NOAA/NWS Office of Hydrology, w/OHD12, 1325 EastBWest Hwy., Silver Spring, MD 20910 (tel: 301-713-0640 ext. 138; fax: 301-713-0963; e-mail: Richard.Fulton@noaa.gov) or Norman W. Junker, NOAA/NWS/NCEP, 5200 Auth Road, Camp Springs, MD 20746 (tel: 301-763-8076; fax: 301-763-8085; e-mail: norman.junker@noaa.gov).

Weather Entrepreneur Workshop, 13 January 2002 -is being sponsored by the National Council of Industrial Meteorologists (NCIM) and the AMS Board on Private Sector Meteorology.

It is recognized that every individual's professional situation is different and is dependent upon that individual's circumstances. Although, plans readily evolve as circumstances change over the course of time and no one plan covers all possible scenarios, common, basic components for a successful foray into the weather entrepreneur world can be learned. Attendees will gain hands-on knowledge of how to succeed as a weather entrepreneur. Positive aspects of the field will be covered as will the Areality checks.@ Attendees should expect to be ready to interact with other attendees, speakers, and committee members. Selected reading materials may be recommended before the course is held.

Who should attend? Professional meteorologists, meteorology students, retirees from the weather field, or anyone interested in starting their own weather-related business. Active weather entrepreneurs will also benefit from attending.

The overall goal of this workshop will be to provide attendees with hands-on knowledge of how to succeed as a weather entrepreneur. The aim is for attendees to Alearn then apply@ the materials presented during the workshop.

The morning session will focus on training in the use of fundamental tools for starting up and sustaining a weather business. Tools addressed will include a business plan, marketing, and advertising. Following a luncheon, the afternoon session will focus on learning about small business programs available to the weather entrepreneur, accounting techniques, and ethical business practices. A panel of experienced weather entrepreneurs will discuss real-world examples of scenarios and the proper ethical responses.

For further information, please contact Matthew J. Parker, Savannah River Technology Center, Bldg. 735-A, Aiken, SC 29808 (tel: 803-725-2805; e-mail: matt.parker@srs.gov).

• First AMS Student Conference and Career Fair
  
  
• Special Conference on African Climate and Environment, 13 January 2002
  
  
• Communication Workshops
  
  
• Workshop on the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS)CThe Centerpiece of our National Weather Service Modernization
  
  
• NOAA Satellite Systems Forum

First AMS Student Conference and Career Fair, 12—13 January 2002

The First AMS Student Conference and Career Fair is being sponsored by the American Meteorological Society and organized by the AMS Board of Higher Education. There is no fee for attending the conference but you must preregister, since there will be no on-site registration. Please note preregistration deadline has passed.

The conference and career fair is intended for senior undergraduates and first-year graduate students, and will focus on active areas and emerging opportunities in atmospheric and related sciences. Sessions will include invited speakers from the private, academic, and government sectors. It is expected that each year a special session will spotlight one organization, and this year it will be UCAR/NCAR. There will be keynote addresses by leading scientists and a student poster session. A career fair is scheduled to provide a forum for students to personally interact with employers and representatives of graduate institutions, and includes the opportunity to establish contacts and set up interviews.

US Global Change Research Program, Monday, 14 January 12:00—1:30 p.m., Room 209, Second Level

A lunch time discussion will be held at the AMS annual meeting on Monday, 14 January, to discuss the planned activities of the US Global Change Research Program (USGCRP). In particular the discussion will address the follow-up of USGCRP agencies to the recently published Global Water Cycle Report prepared by Dr. George Hornberger and a group of 15 water experts. Dr. Hornberger's authoritative report entitled "A Plan for a New Science Initiative on the Global Water Cycle", prepared under the auspices of the USGCRP, provides the federal government with new directions for more coordinated water cycle research. Priority research questions involve long term changes in the intensity of the water cycle, predictability of the shorter term variations in the water cycle, and relationships between variations in the water cycle and related biogeochemical cycles (e.g., carbon, nitrogen, etc). The USGCRP agencies have responded by establishing an Interagency Global Water Cycle Working Group and a Scientific Steering Group for the Water Cycle. These groups, with the assistance of the Global Water Cycle Program Office, are developing an interagency Implementation Plan to address these issues. In addition, a number of agencies are in the processes of developing agency-specific Water Cycle science and implementation plans. At this lunch discussion the science community will be briefed on status of these plans and will be invited to provide comments on the priorities that should be given to these initiatives. For more details contact Rick Lawford at rlawford@earth.usgcrp.gov.

Special Conference on African Climate and Environment, 13 January 2002

The Special Conference on African Climate and Environment, sponsored by the American Meteorological Society, will be held Sunday, 13 January 2002 preceding the 82nd AMS Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida.

The African continent has been profoundly affected by severe droughts and has experienced a protracted period of aridity that is probably linked to global climate change. There has been much debate about climate variability in the region, particularly with respect to the relationship to land surface processes and land surface change. This conference presents a broad view of numerous climatic and environmental issues related to Africa and emphasizes areas (e.g., desertification) where up-to-date knowledge has not been widely disseminated. The format is such that many of the issues are treated generically. Thus, the presentations have relevance to those who are not directly involved in studies of Africa.

In this conference, a series of invited, review lectures will be presented by scientists from a variety of disciplines. The general topics include: 1) monitoring and evaluating climate and the land surface, 2) the mean climate and its variability, 3) causes of variability, 4) feedbacks related to land surface processes, and 5) climate applications and forecasting. Topic 1 includes discussions of the availability of conventional and satellite data, data quality, and data needs. Topic 2 emphasizes patterns of rainfall variability, their interpretation in terms of dynamical factors, and the peculiar features of general circulation that distinguish the African continent. Topic 3 covers both atmospheric and ocean changes associated with rainfall variability. Topic 4 emphasizes vegetation and land use change, desertification, land surface (especially hydrological feedbacks), modelling and aerosols. Topic 5 includes discussions of forecasting, early warning, hurricanes, climate impacts, and climate applications centers in Africa. The list of speakers tentatively includes P. Lamb, J. Prospero, C. J. Tucker, F. Semazzi, D. Entekhabi, S. Prince, S. Nicholson, J. Grist, A. ben Mohamed, M. Boulahya, M. Mainguet, Y. Djellouli, R. Jenne, C. Landsea, G. Huffman, P. Dube, and P. Desanker.

It is hoped that this conference will foster a greater understanding of issues related to African climate and environment and will help to clear up many of the misperceptions about these issues.

Registration form download and bring to the meeting.

For further information please contact Sharon Nicholson (tel: 850-644-4022; e-mail: sen@met.fsu.edu).

NOAA Satellite Systems Forum, Thursday, 17 January 2002, 12:00-1:30 pm, Room 311A/B, Third Level

The NOAA Satellite Systems Forum is an opportunity for providers and users to receive updates on the status and plans of GOES, NOAA, and NPOESS systems and also participate in a facilitated interchange with a panel of experts. NOAA, along with its national and international partners, is currently planning a new generation of polar and geostationary satellites for the 2010 time frame that will have markedly improved spectral, spatial, and temporal resolution in both imagers and sounders. The forum will open with welcoming remarks by NOAA's Assistant Administrator for Satellite and Information Services, Gregory W. Withee. Following updates on satellite systems, a facilitator will guide an interactive discussion based on several key questions such as the following: What benefits do you expect the improved space-based observations to provide to your organization, to your customers, and to society in general? NOAA recognizes the need for two-way dialogue with the user community; what methods of communication would best serve your needs? Benefits from improved observing systems and improved weather forecasts can be lost if users are not made aware of the systems' full capabilities and limitations; how do we best educate the user community on techniques for fully utilizing satellite data and products? GOES and POES satellites are extremely valuable national and international resources; what can be done to ensure the user community is ready to fully integrate the new data into operations immediately following post-launch checkout? A reception with Brown Bag lunch fixings will be available courtesy of ITT.

Communication Workshop, 13 January 2002

Following the theme of last year's luncheon speakers to improve the relationship and communications between AMS members, the atmospheric science community and the media, the AMS will host a Communications Workshop at the 82nd Annual Meeting on Sunday, January 13 from 8:30 A.M. to 12:00 P.M. The Communications Workshop is a unique opportunity to build your skills in working with the media and to strengthen AMS' outreach program.

The Communications Workshop will be an interactive media training session including a panel discussion with leading journalists on getting stories in the right place, at the right time, and with accurate details; hands-on media training techniques and pointers; and discussions on the value of working with the media for the benefit of the science and science funding and refining media and science communications at the AMS.

The Communications Workshop is the first step of several outreach efforts including creating a "virtual rolodex" of spokespersons in the field; conducting several media training sessions to develop spokespeople; generating media and public friendly materials; developing a media useful AMS web site; and creating awards programs for effective science communicators. The workshop is open to all attendees at the Annual Meeting. Deadline for preregistration has passed, however, please download a registration form and bring it with you to the meeting.  For more information contact Stephanie Kenitzer at 425- 432-2192 or kenitzer@dc.ametsoc.org.

Workshop on the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS) The Centerpiece of our National Weather Service Modernization, 13 January 2002

The Workshop on the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System will take place on Sunday, 13 January, 2:00-4:00 p.m., in room 414D of the Orlando Convention Center. All guests and friends of the American Meteorological Society (AMS) and attendees of the 2002 AMS Annual Meeting will have an excellent but short opportunity to see AWIPS in action. There is no fee for attending this workshop.

This 2-hour workshop is designed to showcase the capabilities of AWIPS to those who do not normally get a chance to work with AWIPS or with National Weather Service (NWS) forecasters. During this workshop, meteorologists, using current and live data, will demonstrate the ability of AWIPS to integrate a wide variety weather satellite, observational, and numerical prediction data on different time and space scales and play a critical role in helping operational meteorologists produce and disseminate time-critical severe weather warnings and other products and services for our nation.

This special workshop, held in conjunction with the AMS Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida, is an opportunity to see, first-hand, a successful partnership and the culmination of years of hard work primarily between the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NWS, and PRC, Inc.

If you would like more information, or have any questions or comments, please contact Sam Beckman, (tel: 816-880-9368 x238; e-mail: Sam.Beckman@noaa.gov) or Robert Hamilton, (tel: 816-880-9368 x230; e-mail: Robert.S.Hamilton@noaa.gov.) Both Sam Beckman and Robert Hamilton are employed at the NWS Training Center in Kansas City.