In Brief:

Title: Expert from Discovery Channel's Hit Series Discusses the Science of Extreme Storm Chasing at Rochester Museum & Science Center

Location: RMSC Eisenhart Auditorium, 657 East Avenue, Rochester, NY 14607

Dates/Times: February 29 at 7:30pm

Admission: $15 adults, $8 students (through grade 12 and college students with ID). RMSC members save $1 per ticket. Call (585)697-1942 for tickets and information or visit www.rmsc.org.

Detailed Information: www.rmsc.org; Facebook; Twitter (@rocRMSC)

ROCHESTER, NY—Reed Timmer, extreme meteorologist on Discovery Channel's Storm Chasers series, speaks at the next Richard C. Shultz Science on the Edge lecture at Rochester Museum & Science Center (RMSC). During his presentation entitled, "The Science of Extreme Storm Chasing," Timmer will share stories on what it looks and sounds like inside a tornado, explain the latest technologies involved with solving the mystery of storms, and discuss his ultimate goal of collecting data that saves lives. The program begins at 7:30pm on Wednesday, February 29 in the RMSC Eisenhart Auditorium.

There were more tornadoes in April of last year in the U.S. than any other April in recorded history. More EF5 tornadoes touched down in spring of 2011 than in any other spring in the previous decade (EF stands for "Enhanced Fujita"—a scale that measures the strength of tornadoes. An EF0 is the weakest while EF5 is the strongest). Will this unprecedented tornado season become a trend for the future?

Audience members learn how storm chasers, forecasters, news media, and emergency personnel work together to warn people in the path of these storms, and how social networking is emerging as a new platform for delivering this potentially life-saving information. Powerful tornadoes like the Joplin, Missouri EF5 and the long-track EF4 that struck Tuscaloosa, Alabama in 2011 remain quite a mystery to meteorologists—especially since the wind speeds above the ground were particularly strong, causing such devastation. Learn how storm chasers are using innovative new technologies such as armored, tank-like vehicles (i.e., the Dominator), mobile radar and probe-launching tornado cannons to study the most powerful atmospheric forces on the planet. In addition to extreme tornado science, this presentation will show audiences what it looks and sounds like inside tornadoes.

Timmer has chased more than 400 tornadoes and hurricanes, becoming one of the world's leading experts on severe weather. In addition to being one of the featured meteorologists on Discovery Channel's Storm Chasers series, Timmer is completing a doctorate degree in meteorology at the University of Oklahoma, and he's the author of Into the Storm—an adrenaline-filled chronicle of his life as an extreme meteorologist. In 2003 he established TornadoVideos.net (TVN), which has become the premier source of weather footage for news and production companies worldwide. His expertise regularly lands him on top-rated programs such as Larry King Live, Piers Morgan, Anderson Cooper and Good Morning America. His recent appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno have helped give audiences a better understanding of the tragic 2011 tornado season.

The RMSC Science on the Edge Lecture Series, now in its 30^th year, continues with two additional programs:

Wednesday, March 21 at 7:30pm

"Extinct Giants, Shrinking Dwarfs: A Paleontologist's Perspective on Madagascar's Vanishing Ecosystems"

Kathleen Muldoon, Assistant Professor of Anatomy, Dartmouth College

Wednesday, April 25 at 7:30pm
"The Re-convergence of Music and Science"

Mark F. Bocko and David Headlam, Departments of Electrical and Computer Engineering (the College) and Music Theory (Eastman School of Music, University of Rochester

Each presentation is followed by a brief reception where visitors can enjoy snacks, beverages and meet the presenter. All lectures, unless otherwise specified, are held in the Eisenhart Auditorium on the RMSC campus at 657 East Avenue at 7:30pm Wednesday evenings. Ticket prices include:

Series Tickets:
RMSC Members: $45 adult, $25 student*
General Public: $55 adult, $30 student*
Single Lecture Tickets:
RMSC Members: $14 adult, $7 student*
General Public: $15 adult, $8 student*
*students through grade 12 or college students with valid college ID.

Call (585)697-1942 or visit www.rmsc.org for additional information and to purchase tickets.

For a high-resolution headshot and additional information, contact Debra Jacobson, Director of Marketing and Community Affairs, RMSC at (585)697-1944 or debra_jacobson@rmsc.org.

Rochester Museum & Science Center (RMSC) receives major funding from Monroe County. RMSC includes a planetarium, nature center and science/regional history museum. The Rochester Museum & Science Center stimulates broad community interest and understanding of science and technology, and their impact—past, present, future—on our lives. For more information about RMSC, visit www.rmsc.org. Find us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@rocRMSC).

###