Weather-watchers could get a double-dose of fraternal forecasters

Weather-watchers could get a double-dose of fraternal forecasters

University Park, Pa. -- Aaron and Andrew Ulrich are not your typical Penn State students. In fact, they are not your typical brothers. The 23-year-old juniors have a unique career goal -- to be the first identical twin television meteorologists in the United States.

By working together -- hopefully at a station in St. Louis or near their hometown of Cape Girardeau, MO -- they hope to add a little bit of entertainment and fun to delivering the weather forecast ... especially since they do not agree most of the time.

The twins got their start in meteorology thanks to their father, who used to take them to a hillside overlooking the Mississippi River to watch thunderstorms roll by. They say that while their interests were bred separately, weather was something that they both loved.

"I chose this major because all of my life, my head has been in the clouds, interested the power that weather has on people and their property," said Aaron. "It is quite common among weather people that the worse the weather, the more we all find it fascinating."

When you ask them why they chose Penn State, they will say in unison, "Penn State has the best meteorology school in America." This is substantiated by the fact that one in every four meteorologists in the United States is a graduate of the University's top-ranked meteorology program.

In addition to taking classes for their major, the twins are honing their broadcast skills by working at the campus weather service, which provides forecasts to radio stations across central and northwest Pennsylvania.

"We thought about going to school in Hawaii, but the problem with that is when you go to that island, there isn't any coming back in the near future," said Andrew. "You're stuck. I would kind of like to be able to get off the island at some point to go home."

Added Aaron, "The location of Penn State in the snow belt is absolutely awesome. I love the huge amounts of snow. Last year we got around 80 inches. At home in Cape Girardeau, the amount of snow is averaged around 12 inches a year and sometimes we don't even get but four inches."

Andrew is older by 10 minutes, but Aaron says his mother told him that he was "aimed to come out first, but Andrew started a fight before birth and I lost out."

How do people tell them apart? "Some people see it in our face shapes, some see it in our eyes, others see it in our intelligence. I am naturally smarter," Aaron said with a laugh that sounds remarkably like Andrew's.

While it is difficult to tell them apart visually, they do have their differences. "Aaron is more impatient then I am," said Andrew. "He likes things done in a hurry, right away. I take a more relaxed approach."

There is only downside to being meteorology majors, according to the twins. "We never thought there would be so much physics and math required just to become a forecaster," said Aaron. "The professors continue to tell students that math will aide us in our forecasting by helping us understand how the atmosphere works. All I have to say to that is I have a lot of trust in them that that is the case."

For photos of the twins, visit http://live.psu.edu/still_life/2004_09_23_twins/index.html