Penn State Meteorology celebrates 50 years on TV

Penn State Meteorology celebrates 50 years on TV

University Park, Pa. -- Long before The Weather Channel, when TV news was in black and white and only 15 minutes each evening, Penn State's Department of Meteorology began broadcasting local weather to central Pennsylvania farmers and residents. Fifty years later, Penn State meteorologists are still providing weather information to the entire Commonwealth via the Pennsylvania Cable Network and to dozens of U.S. cities through Weather World alumni working at TV stations.

"Dr. Charles Hosler, then-professor in the meteorology department, had been presenting the weather on radio for 10 years when he heard what he considered the worst weather forecast he had ever heard on a local station," said Paul Knight, Penn State meteorologist and Pennsylvania state climatologist.

Apparently, this 1957 forecast predicted 24 hours of rain on a day Hosler knew would be rain free. Suggesting that he could provide better weather information, Hosler convinced WFBG-TV in Altoona to give him a 15-minute show at midday. That show soon merged with the College of Agriculture's new 30-minute "Farm, Home and Garden" show.

Having an actual meteorologist not only making the forecast, but also presenting it on air was unusual in the 1950s and 1960s. Initially, some weather reports were done by animated mascots, others by models, hence the weather girl stereotype. Complicating things was the lack of today's modern weather tools. There were no satellite images, computer-generated maps or forecasting programs. Early computer forecasts in the '60s improved the weather reports, but data from the National Weather Service had to be interpreted by the meteorologist, drawn on maps and then presented.

A group of early television meteorologists, led by a contingent from Pennsylvania, decided that some formal recognition of TV weather forecasters was necessary and in 1957, the American Meteorological Association Seal of Approval was established. Hosler received one of the first of these.

When Penn State's new public television station, WPSX opened in 1965, the weather program moved there and in 1974, the first satellite images were broadcast on the six-minute weather segment of the "State of the Weather/Shape of the World." In 1983 those six minutes became "Weather World," a 14-minute broadcast.

To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Penn State TV weather, "Weather World" conducted six interviews with Hosler that will be broadcast June 12, 13, 18, 20, 26 and 27 on "Weather World" and will be available on PCN on demand via http://www.pcntv.com/ online.

"We always try to keep the audience connected to our weather reports," said Fred Gadomski, meteorologist and one of the three current anchors of "Weather World" now seen on PCN. "Weather in depth is something 'Weather World' does very well."

Hosler went on to become the head of the department of meteorology, the dean of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, and then senior vice president for research and dean of The Graduate School. He also served as acting executive vice president and provost. He retired from the University in 1991, having long before passed the reins of "Weather World" to other meteorologists.

Today, besides Gadomski and Knight, Jon Nese, former weather channel storm analyst and "Weather World" alum from the 1980s, anchor the show with help from other Penn State meteorologists and a variety of undergraduate and graduate students. The show is produced by Penn State's Weather Communications Group. Each weeknight, one anchor and another meteorologist appear on PCN's broadcast at 5:45 p.m. When the show moved from WPSX to PCN in 2004, a five-minute version remained at WPSX (now WPSU-TV).

"This program has a legacy," said Knight. "Dick Hallgren, who became director of the National Weather Service, was a graduate student when he worked on the show. Joel Myers, founder, president and chairman of the board of AccuWeather Inc., as well as Elliot Abrams and Joe Sobel of AccuWeather presented on "Weather World."

Other alumni of the program include Geoff Cornish, currently at KOAM-TV based both in Joplin, Mo., and Pittsburg, Kan.; Justin Brousse, at WKRN, Nashville, Tenn.; and Brian Monahan, at WINK, Fort Myers, Fla.

While many meteorology undergraduate and graduate students benefit from television either production or broadcast exposure on "Weather World," other students took the program as an example and ran with it. A CNET spinoff of sorts called "Weather or Not" is wholly produced and directed by students. This 15-minute show appears weekly at 7:15 p.m. Thursday and is rebroadcast on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

"The students do this on their own," said Nese. "We have a very high placement rate in television meteorology for students who appear on 'Weather or Not.' "

"Weather World" currently goes to more than 95 percent of the cable users in Pennsylvania. The show covers weather in the major metropolitan areas of the state including Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Harrisburg and Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, as well as all places in between.

"'Weather World' supplies an absolutely complete view of the weather in Pennsylvania," said Gadomski. "Probably more than you want to know in 14 minutes."