The Oklahoma Climatological Survey has various opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students to participate in a wide variety of research projects. Specific information is provided below.
The Oklahoma Climatological Survey is committed to enhancing the academic experiences for undergraduate students at the University of Oklahoma. Periodically, the Oklahoma Climatological Survey will provide paid, part-time undergraduate positions to students to work on research projects. Such positions include those that span the academic year as well as specific summer internships and may involve working on teams composed of international scientists as part of field research experiments, specific weather or climate case studies, or improvement of weather and climate monitoring technologies across the state. As part of the paid positions OCS undergraduates are challenged to present their research to broader audiences that may include travel to scientific conferences or the publication of research results in relevant journals.
The faculty and staff of OCS also supports the broader mentorship of undergraduates including senior capstone research projects at the University of Oklahoma. OCS also provides mentorship for visiting undergraduate students that participate in projects such Research Experiences for Undergraduates and the Hollings Scholarship Program.
For more information about undergraduate research opportunities at the Oklahoma Climatological Survey, please email firstname.lastname@example.org (Subject: Undergraduate Research Opportunities at OCS).
The OCS staff includes regular and adjunct faculty that supervise and mentor graduate students from various academic units across the University of Oklahoma including the School of Meteorology and the Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability. In addition, because the mission of OCS spans weather and climate, the opportunities for graduate research extend from micrometeorology to regional climate and associated applications to human and natural systems.
Graduate research assistants at OCS are provided with opportunities to enhance their academic experience beyond the classroom by participating in a wide range of activities including field research campaigns, international workshops and conferences, and operational instrumentation and data collection (e.g., the Oklahoma Mesonet). Additionally, graduate assistants often gain critical exposure to end-user stakeholders across various socioeconomic sectors.
For more information about graduate research opportunities at the Oklahoma Climatological Survey, please email email@example.com (Subject: Graduate Research Opportunities at OCS).
Research student assistants (undergraduate and graduate) at the Oklahoma Climatological Survey are encouraged to participate in all levels of the research process including the publication of results across a wide range of topics. The following are examples of recent publications involving OCS student researchers.
Recent Peer-Reviewed Articles (Since 2007):
Basara, J. B., B. G. Illston, C. A. Fiebrich, P. Browder, C. Morgan, J. P. Bostic, A. McCombs, R. A. McPherson, A. J. Schroeder, and K. C. Crawford, 2010: The Oklahoma City Micronet. Meteorological Applications, DOI:10.1002/met.189.
Klockow, K. E., R. A. McPherson, and D. S. Sutter, 2010: On the Economic Nature of Crop Production Decisions Using the Oklahoma Mesonet. Weather, Climate, and Society, 2, 224-236.
Schroeder, A. J., J. B. Basara, B. G. Illston, 2010: Challenges Associated with Classifying Urban Meteorological Stations: The Oklahoma City Micronet Example. The Open Atmospheric Science Journal, 4, 88-100.
Sutter, D., and S. Erickson, 2010: The Time Cost of Tornado Warnings and the Savings with Storm-Based Warnings. Weather, Climate, and Society, 2, 103-112.
Basara, J. B., B. G. Illston, T. E. Winning, and C. A Fiebrich, 2009: Evaluation of Rainfall Measurements from the WXT510 Sensor for use in the Oklahoma City Micronet. The Open Atmospheric Science Journal, 3, 39-45.
Schroeder, A. J., 2009: An Analysis of Observations from Portable Temperature and Humidity Sensors Deployed Across Oklahoma City. The Journal of Young Investigators, 19, 11.
Basara, J. B., P. K. Hall, A. J. Schroeder, and B. G. Illston, K. L. Nemunaitis, 2008: The diurnal cycle of the urban heat island in Oklahoma City. J. Geophys. Res., 113, D20109, doi:10.1029/2008JD010311.
Hocker, J. E., and J. B. Basara, 2008: A ten year spatial climatology of squall line storms across Oklahoma. Int. J. Climatol., 28, 765-775.
Hocker, J. E., and J. B. Basara, 2008: A geographic information systems based analysis of supercells across Oklahoma. J. Appl. Meteor. and Climatol., 47, 1518-1538.
Illston, B.G., J.B. Basara, D.K. Fischer, R.L. Elliott, C. Fiebrich, K.C. Crawford, K. Humes, and E. Hunt, 2008: Mesoscale Monitoring of Soil Moisture Across a Statewide Network. J. of Atmos. and Oceanic Tech, 25, 167-182.
Hunt, E., J. B. Basara, and C. Morgan, 2007: Significant Inversions and Rapid In-Situ Cooling at a Well-Sited Oklahoma Mesonet Station. J. Appl. Meteor., 46, 353-367.
Note: Names in red correspond to OCS student researchers.
Recent Theses and Dissertations (Since 2007):
Tardif-Huber, L. M., 2011: Quantifying the spatial and temporal variability of the surface energy budget across Okalhaoma during a period of historic precipitation. M.S. Thesis, School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman.
Dilekli, N., 2010: Developing an evaluating a web-based emergency management spatial decision support system. Ph.D. Dissertation, Department of Geography, University of Oklahoma, Norman.
Schroeder, A. J., 2010: A Quantitative Description of the Oklahoma City Urban Heat Island. M.S. Thesis, School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman.
Klockow, K.E., 2008: Economic benefits of the Oklahoma Mesonet to the State of Oklahoma. M.S.P.M. Non-Thesis Research Paper, School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman.
Fiebrich, C. A., 2007: Transitioning the historical climate archives to data from newly automated sites: Maintaining continuity in the temperature climate record. Ph.D. Dissertation, School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman.
Monroe, J. W. 2007: Evaluating NARR surface reanalysis variables and NLDAS using Oklahoma Mesonet observations. M.S. Thesis, School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman.
Rathke-Coleman, J. M., 2007: Comparison of pavement surface temperature forecasts initialized with observations from road weather information systems and the Oklahoma Mesonet. M.S. Thesis, School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman.
Sturgis, K. M., 2007: Spatial coherence of rainfall variations using the Oklahoma Mesonet. M.S. Thesis, School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman.
Tapp, K., 2007: Investigation of the Use of WSR-88D Precipitation Estimates for Near-Real Time Quality Assurance of Meteorological Surface Network Rainfall Observations. M.S.P.M. Non-Thesis Research Paper, School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman.
Whittier, C., 2007: Quantifying the influence of environmental conditions on the effect of winter wheat. M.S. Thesis, School of Meteorology, University of Oklahoma, Norman.