Research

On of my current research foci is the thermodynamic and kinematic
variability of the near-dryline environment, especially in regards to
the initiation of deep convection.  As dryline structure and propagation
are closely tied to surface-based processes, the substantial variations
in terrain vegetation and land use across the Texas panhandle permit
the investigation of these controls.

The Simultaneous Observations of the Near-Dryline Environment
(SONDE-2005) project collected mobile mesonet data on a number of
dryline events during the springs of 2005 and 2006.  Currently, I am
investigating the multiple scales of influence on dryline development
and structure, from the synoptic realm (e.g., effects of pressure
distribution on the confluence of airstreams) to the microscale (e.g.,
variations in land-use and associated solenoidal circulations).  

                                                         During the spring seasons of 2006-2008, students and faculty
                                                         from the Atmospheric Science Group and Wind Science and
                                                         Engineering Research Center carried out the Multiple
                                                         Observations of Boundaries in the Local-Storm Environment
                                                         (MOBILE) Experiment, focused on measuring the kinematic and
                                                         thermodynamic variability within supercell thunderstorms.  In 2006,
                                                         a new in-situ measurement technology named "StickNet" was
                                                         developed and introduced to the field.  StickNet is a rapidly-deployable
                                                         observing platform capable of high-frequency measurements of
                                                         temperature, humidity, pressure and wind speed/direction.  A total of
                                                         22 StickNet instruments were successfully tested en masse for the first
                                                         time during MOBILE_2007.  A total of 24 instruments were used in the
                                                         recent field phase of Verification of the Origins of Rotation in Tornadoes
                                                         Experiment (VORTEX2) in 2009 and 2010 to reveal the prevalence of
                                                         baroclinity in the forward- and rear-flank downdraft regions of supercell
                                                         thunderstorms and ancillary intersecting storms.

2009 and 2010 saw the debut of the Texas Tech     
University Ka-band (TTUKa) radars - two mobile Doppler radars
in Ka-band (35 GHz) that are being used for the mapping of wind
fields in pre-convective boundary layers and in proximity to
convective phenomena (e.g., thunderstorm outflows, tornadoes). 
These radars will be used to help satisfy research objectives in
VORTEX2 and SONDE.