Meet the Group!

Mark McGarry, Jr.

M.S. Student (B.S. - University of Northern Colorado)

Email: mark.mcgarryjr@und.edu

Connect with Mark on LinkedIn!

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About Mark

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​My passion for meteorology was ignited when I was 6 years old living in Katy, Texas in 2005. My dad got deployed for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and I was in awe with the kind of power tropical cyclones packed as they made landfall. This inspired me to pay attention to the yearly hurricane predictions from Colorado State University and the National Hurricane Center. As I continued to watch these storms develop, it became clear how inherently difficult it was to resolve them in computer models and get an accurate prediction of their future behavior. This culminated in my desire at the age of 10 to pursue meteorology as a career and the goal of developing a more accurate computer model for predicting the behavior of tropical cyclones.

I have a Bachelor of Science in Earth Sciences: Meteorology from the University of Northern Colorado with minors in physics and mathematics. During my time at UNCO, I did a variety of semester research projects that included looking at how different convective parameterizations could be used in the Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) model to simulate the rapid intensification of Hurricane Michael (2018), and I ran a statistical analysis on tropical cyclones across the world to determine if there is an increase in the overall strength of these systems over a 30+ year period.

I worked as a Quality Control and Service (QCS) intern at the Radiometrics Corporation performing tests on new and used microwave radiometers as well as a Supercomputing Intern with the Rocky Mountain Advanced Computing Consortium (RMACC) where I have assisted in the decommissioning of the Summit Supercomputer and learned about how supercomputers function. I volunteered at 2 National Weather Service offices where I learned more about forecasting, verification, and Decision Support Services during potentially dangerous weather events. I am really excited to move forward as a graduate student to build upon this foundation I have built and I look forward to seeing where this journey takes me!

Sydney Walters

M.S. Student (B.S. - Ohio University)

Email: sydney.e.walters@und.edu

Connect with Sydney on LinkedIn and Twitter/X!

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About Sydney

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I graduated from Ohio University in December of 2022 with my B.S. in meteorology, as well as minors in journalism and religious studies. After graduation, I accepted a job at WeatherNews in Norman, OK, where I worked as a marine meteorologist/voyage planner until returning to grad school!

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I was always fascinated by the weather, often listening to the NOAA Weather Radio for hours as a kid (weird, I know). However, I never really considered meteorology as a career. In fact, I began my undergraduate studies as a journalism major… only after considering chemical engineering, music education, and many other majors. I quickly realized how much I missed math and science, and while scrolling through the programs offered at Ohio University, I saw it: meteorology. During my time at Ohio U, I was very involved with our AMS chapter, climate and sustainability ambassadors, and mentoring first year students. 

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Quickly into my time at WeatherNews, I fell in love with all things tropical meteorology, and developed a desire to deepen our understanding of it. I also deeply missed learning and teaching and wanted to explore a new career path in academia, which led me here! I hope to contribute to the knowledge we have surrounding tropical meteorology, as well as play a role in the education of the next generation of meteorologists.