A Customization of A World of Weather: Fundamentals of Meteorology

David M. Babb prepared much of the artwork within the text as well as the digital media used in many of the exercises. Dr. Babb received his B.S. in meteorology from the University of Kansas, during which time he worked summers at the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, OK. In 1996, he earned his Ph.D. from Penn State studying cloud-drop sizes using millimeter-wave radar. Currently, he teaches several online meteorology courses and resides as a fellow in the John A. Dutton e-Education Institute at Penn State specializing in instructional media design and assessment. His use of media and  interactive learning tools for a nationally acclaimed online forecasting course at Penn State has been honored by the University Continuing Education Association.

Jon M. Nese is Associate Head for Undergraduate Programs in the Department of Meteorology and Atmospheric Science at Penn State where he teaches a variety of undergraduate courses, including Introduction to Weather Analysis and Synoptic Meteorology Laboratory. He also hosts the Emmy Award-winning series WxYz for the department’s long-running weather magazine show Weather World. Prior to joining the Penn State faculty, Dr. Nese was an on-air Storm Analyst for The Weather Channel and Chief Meteorologist at The Franklin Institute Science Museum in Philadelphia. While there, he co-authored The Philadelphia Area Weather Book, which received the 2005 Louis J. Battan Author’s Award from the American Meteorological Society.

Lee M. Grenci retired from the Department of Meteorology and Atmospheric Science at Penn State in 2012 after 28 years of teaching. From 1986 to 2001, he was also a member of the Penn State Weather Communications Group, whose responsibilities included the daily preparation of the weather page for the New York Times. Among many honors, he received the Wilson Award for Outstanding Teaching in Penn State’s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences in 1993, the College’s 2003 Mitchell Award for Innovative Teaching, and the College’s 2008 Faculty Mentoring Award. In retirement, Lee is active in raising money to help people afflicted by multiple sclerosis. He has raised over $32,000 for research to find a cure for MS. He is also an avid cyclist.