A meteorologist is a scientist who studies and works in the field of meteorology aiming to understand or predict Earth's atmospheric phenomena including the weather . Those who study meteorological phenomena are meteorologists in research, while those using mathematical models and knowledge to prepare daily weather forecasts are called weather forecasters or operational meteorologists .
7-491: In late 2023, American meteorologist and tornado expert Thomas P. Grazulis created the Outbreak Intensity Score (OIS) as a way to rank tornado outbreaks . For the score, only significant tornadoes are counted: F2/EF2 tornadoes receive 2 points each, F3/EF3 tornadoes receive 5 points each, F4/EF4 tornadoes receive 10 points each, and F5/EF5 tornadoes receive 15 points each. The number of total points determine
14-480: A person must take at least one undergraduate university degree in meteorology. For researchers, this training continues with higher education, while for forecasters, each country has its own way of training. For example, the Meteorological Service of Canada and UK Met Office have their own training course after the university, while Météo-France takes charge of all the training once the person has passed
21-462: The Earth's general climate . Research meteorologists are specialized in areas like: Operational meteorologists, also known as forecasters: Meteorologists can also be consultants for private firms in studies for projects involving weather phenomena such as windfarms , tornado protection, etc. They finally can be weather presenters in the media (radio, TV, internet). To become a meteorologist,
28-517: The OIS, reaching the status of "Devastating Outbreak". There have been several tornado outbreaks which scored at least 30 points, but 79 or less on the OIS, reaching the status of "Major Outbreak". Meteorologist Meteorologists work in government agencies , private consulting and research services, industrial enterprises, utilities, radio and television stations , and in education . They are not to be confused with weather presenters , who present
35-584: The entrance examination at the National School of Meteorology after high school. In United States, forecasters are hired by the National Weather Service or private firms after university, and receive on-the-job training, while researchers are hired according to their expertise. In some countries, such as in United States, there is a third way where a graduate in meteorology and communication at
42-444: The rating for the outbreak, which is broken up into seven categories. There have been three tornado outbreaks which scored more than 250 points on the OIS, reaching the status of "Super Outbreak". There have been 43 tornado outbreaks which scored at least 120 points, but less than 249 on the OIS, reaching the status of "Historic Outbreak". There have been several tornado outbreaks which scored at least 80 points, but less than 120 on
49-425: The weather forecast in the media and range in training from journalists having just minimal training in meteorology to full-fledged meteorologists. Meteorologists study the Earth's atmosphere and its interactions with the Earth's surface, the oceans and the biosphere . Their knowledge of applied mathematics and physics allows them to understand the full range of atmospheric phenomena, from snowflake formation to
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