Steve Nesbitt

Steve Nesbitt

@70dbz.bsky.social

Associate Dean, College of LAS, Professor, Department of Climate, Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences, University of Illinois. AMS Fellow; I'm a meteorologist that brakes for interesting cloud formations. Opinions mine. #BillsMafia swnesbitt.github.io

2K followers1.3K following532 posts

Steve Nesbitt
@70dbz.bsky.social

Sunglint visible due to seasonal geometry showing flooding along the coastal plain in Ecuador due to last week’s El Niño-related heavy rains.

Steve Nesbitt
@70dbz.bsky.social

Come see our poster at the AMS Madison Summit. TL/DR Even in a region famous for extreme thunderstorms (Central Argentina), extreme floods can be promoted when warm rain processes are tied to orography.

Steve Nesbitt
@70dbz.bsky.social

We spoke with the founder of @standupforscience.net Collette Dellawalla about the damage to the US Scientific community and what may still be to come on Weather Realness, the podcast about Illinois weather and climate by @climasillinois.bsky.social and Illinois Public Media.

will.illinois.eduHow politics is reshaping scientific research in America | Illinois Public MediaThe Trump administration's proposal changes how scientific research is funded. We learn how this could affect the future of science and the public.
Steve Nesbitt
@70dbz.bsky.social

Working on an analysis of radar coverage for the State of Illinois, including beam height and wind farm contamination relative to recent severe weather reports. 2026 has been a year in Central Illinois!

Steve Nesbitt
@70dbz.bsky.social

NEXRAD in Central Illinois showing three body scatter off of moving freight trains this morning. Anomalous propagation from shallow cool airmass keeps the beam low, and radar energy is bounced repeatedly between the high reflectivity train cars, making it look like it is coming from further away.

Steve Nesbitt
@70dbz.bsky.social

I spoke with @ewolffwx.bsky.social about the importance of weather balloon observations on Weather Realness this week! Weather Realness is a production of the U of I's Department of Climate, Meteorology & Atmospheric Sciences and Illinois Public Media. will.illinois.edu/weatherrealn...

will.illinois.eduWhy meteorologists still rely on weather balloons | Illinois Public MediaMeteorologists observe the weather with satellites and aircraft. But, scientists still use weather balloons, one of their most reliable instruments.
Steve Nesbitt
@70dbz.bsky.social

What's new: one click pulls a real (u, θ) column from NOAA HRRR over the CONUS, drag-edit profiles on top of it, instant visualizations. Remarkable that instead of letting teaching software quietly fade into the hills (sorry), we can give it a second life with AI tools.

Steve Nesbitt
@70dbz.bsky.social

TL/DR: Siloing weather from climate science risks dismantling decades of innovation, diminishing the return on taxpayer investment. Putting NCAR’s weather research at a single university eliminates much of its strengths. NCAR reforms must happen within open frameworks, not behind closed doors.

Steve Nesbitt
@70dbz.bsky.social

We might be talking about a different hail record than just the Illinois state record…

Steve Nesbitt@70dbz.bsky.social

Hail 5, to possibly 6 inches reported near Kankakee, Illinois, midway between Chicago and Champaign-Urbana. If verified, would set the state record. (on March 10 no less)

Steve Nesbitt
@70dbz.bsky.social

Hail 5, to possibly 6 inches reported near Kankakee, Illinois, midway between Chicago and Champaign-Urbana. If verified, would set the state record. (on March 10 no less)

Bill ♥️@billwx.bsky.social

These are a few pictures of the large hail that fell this afternoon around Kankakee, Illinois, causing major damage there. These pictures are from WeatherWise.