Jason brings up a satellite image of the SAL.

When we first flew into Miami we had some very unexpected news. In half an hour we had to be at NOAA’s hurricane research center-ready to film with Jason Dunion.  I really had no idea what to expect and I was a little nervous and wondering what Jason Dunion would be like and if I would understand anything he said or whether I would be totally confused.  I really didn’t have anything to worry about-Jason was a great teacher in just a little while I went from knowing nothing about SAL and very little about hurricanes to knowing a great deal more than most people.  It was a little intimidating at first, working with one of the world’s leading hurricane researchers, but Jason was really interesting and funny and working with him was great.

 

But why did we have to meet with Jason so soon after landing?  Well, Jason is a scientist who works

Jason leads the Argos in a discussion of satellite data.

with a giant dust layer that flows off the coast of Africa to fly a hurricane hunter mission into a developing storm, but by Tuesday the storm has collapsed and we were able to work with him for another day.  On these missions, Jason and other scientists (as well as an experienced crew) fly a modified plane right into the heart of a hurricane, the eye wall and the eye.  While NOAA has never lost a hurricane plane, Jason and his colleagues risk their lives each time they fly right into a storm that most people try to avoid.

 

Jason wasn’t always a meteorologist though, for a while after college he worked as a social worker helping disabled people gain independence. However he was always fascinated by weather and decided to go back to school and become a meteorologist. Now working at NOAA, Jason is trying to advance knowledge of the SAL to

Jason and Michael discuss a satellite map

improve hurricane forecasts and safety for those in the path of hurricanes.  The SAL is one of the most fascinating things I have learned about while working in Miami, it’s absolutely giant!  Some dust storms can stretch from Africa to the Caribbean and cover the area of the continental United States and they have a profound effect on Hurricanes, ripping them apart with a mix of wind shear, dry air and dust.

 

Working with Jason was really a great experience. He was a great teacher who didn’t mind taking time to explain all the intricacies of the SAL and the “ingredients” needed to make a hurricane. He was also willing to do some of the most crazy things we asked him to do including recreating the SAL with ingredients like chili flakes and baby powder and a “hurricane” (a fan). It was a pretty messy experience, with powder flying everywhere (and prematurely graying my hair) but Jason didn’t mind at all.  Jason also explained all of the major weather occurances in the world, going through the world map and showing us different views that highlighted current weather factors such as surface temerature, air dryness, and humidity." When he led a map discussion with the other NOAA scientists he always made sure we understood what was happening and he even asked our opinion on the weather. Jason was great to work with.  I personally learned so much from him. He changed my views on meteorology, a subject that I had never been interested in before. Now, even if I don’t become a meteorologist, I’m definitely going to take some classes on the subject and follow the weather more closely, especially hurricanes.

 

NOAA’s two great technologies: Satellite data and the weather rock