Benjamin Fellman

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Benjamin Fellman

Graduate
Research Assistant

benjamin.j.fellman@ou.edu
benjamin.fellman@noaa.gov
5 Partners Place, 201 Stephenson Parkway, Suite 2300

Education

MS, Meteorology, University of Oklahoma
BS, Meteorology, Millersville University of Pennsylvania

Affiliated CIWRO Team

Storm Prediction Center

About

Benjamin Fellman is a 3rd-year PhD Candidate in the School of Meteorology at the University of Oklahoma. During his master's degree, Benjamin's research focused on identifying flash drought events in the Southern Great Plains, and highlighting the time periods that these events have the most significant impact to winter wheat productivity. Present day, Benjamin now works in partnership with the Institute for Public Policy, Research and Analysis (IPPRA) and the Storm Prediction Center (SPC). His doctoral research focuses on extended-range severe weather predictability, roughly defined as three to seven days in advance of events. In particular, he is interested in assessing the climatological properties of these forecasts and understanding how various user groups, such as members of the public and emergency managers, use and perceive severe weather forecasts on this timescale.

Research Focus

Flash Drought
Severe Weather Communication
Risk Perceptions

CIWRO Research Themes

Social and Socioeconomic Impacts of High Impact Weather

Honors and awards

2025 - American Meteorological Society Top Oral Presentation Award – 3rd Place
2024 - National Science Foundation (NSF) National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) Special Recognition Award
2023 - Oklahoma NSF EPSCoR Top Oral ‘Lightning Talk’ Presentation – 1st Place
2021 - Millersville Dining with Champions Distinguished Scholar-Athlete
2021 - College Sports Information Directors of America (COSIDA) Academic All-American, Men’s At Large, First Team
2019-2021 - 3-Time Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Scholar Champion
2020 - COSIDA Academic All-American, Men’s At Large, Third Team
2020 - Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Spring Top 10 Awardee
2019 - Founding brother of the Omicron Delta Kappa Chapter at Millersville University
2019 - NOAA Ernest F. Hollings Scholarship Awardee
2019 - MAK Athletic Scholarship Recipient, Millersville University
2019 - Engle Scholarship Recipient, Millersville University

Publications

Fellman, B. J., J. B. Basara, J. I. Christian, and M. R. Tye, 2025. Flash Drought Timing and Winter Wheat Productivity in the Southern Great Plains of the United States. Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, 64, 637–652, https://doi.org/10.1175/JAMC-D-24-0144.1.
Ernst, S., Fellman, B. J., Rosen, Z., Krocak, M. J., Jirak, I. L., Ripberger, J., & Jenkins-Smith, H. (2025). Investigating How NWS Meteorologists, Emergency Managers, and the Public Interpret Conditional Intensity Forecasts for Severe Weather. Weather and Forecasting, 40(3), 507–524. https://doi.org/10.1175/WAF-D-24-0109.1.
Christian, J. I., Grace, T. M., Fellman, B. J., Mesheske, D. F., Edris, S. G., Olayiwola, H. O., Basara, J. B., Fuchs, B. A., & Furtado, J. C. (2024). The Flash Droughts Across the South-Central United States in 2022: Drivers, Predictability, and Impacts. Weather and Climate Extremes, 100730. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wace.2024.100730.

Conference presentations

Fellman, B.J., Harvey, L.A., Ernst, S.E., Krocak, M., and Ripberger, J. Poster Presentation – 2026 American Meteorological Society Annual Conference. From Watching and Monitoring to Warning and Acting: Assessing National Weather Service Social Media Posts in the Watch-to-Warning Timeframe
Fellman, B.J., Brooks, H., Ripberger, J., Marsh, P., Ernst, S.E., Hill, A., and Krocak, M. Poster Presentation– 2026 American Meteorological Society Annual Conference. The Calm Before the Storm: A Climatological Overview of the Storm Prediction Center's Day 4-8 Severe Weather Outlook
Fellman, B.J., Ripberger, J., Brooks, H., Ernst, S.E., Bitterman, A.L., and Krocak, M. Oral Presentation – 2026 American Meteorological Society Annual Conference. Does Progression Matter? - Exploring How Extended-Range Severe Weather Forecast Changes May Affect Trust and Community Readiness
Fellman, B.J., Ripberger, J., and Martin, E.R., Oral Presentation – 2025 American Meteorological Society Annual Conference. Bridging the Weather and Climate Product Suite: Public Interpretation, Understanding, and Utility of Subseasonal-to-Seasonal (S2S) Products
Fellman, B.J., Ernst, S.E., Rosen, Z., Krocak, M., and Ripberger, J. Oral Presentation – 2025 American Meteorological Society Annual Conference. So, Will it Storm? - Understanding Public Knowledge and Interpretation of Extended Range Severe Weather Forecasts
Fellman, B.J., Workshop - 2025 American Meteorological Society Student Conference. Cloud Nine Communication: Perfecting Your Elevator Speeches • Invited Speakers – Dr. Jana Houser, Dr. Andrea Lopez Lang, Mr. Rob Reale, Mr. Chris Vaccaro, Mr. Bobby Saba, and Dr. Chris Schultz
Fellman, B.J., Diodosio, K., Peach, K., Christian, J., Grace, T., León-Corwin, M., Ripberger, J., AND Jenkins-Smith, H. Poster Presentation – 2024 Oklahoma NSF EPSCoR Annual State Conference. Tornadoes, Heat Waves, Ice Storms, Oh My – An Analysis of Contrasting Risk Perceptions to Weather and S2S Phenomena in the State of Oklahoma
Fellman, B.J., Ernst, S.E., Ripberger, J., Krocak, M., and Rosen, Z. Oral Presentation – 2024 American Meteorological Society Annual Conference. The Art of Severe Weather Probability: Unraveling the Conditional Intensity Puzzle
Fellman, B.J., Basara, J.B., Christian, J.I., and Tye, M.R. Oral Presentation – 2024 American Meteorological Society Annual Conference. The Drought Dilemma: Understanding Rapid Drought Development and its Potential Impacts to U.S. Winter Wheat Agriculture in the Southern Great Plains
Fellman, B.J., Workshop - 2024 American Meteorological Society Student Conference. Crafting Compelling Elevator Speeches: Your 30-to-60 Second Storytelling Workshop • Invited Speakers – Dr. Aaron Kennedy, Dr. Makenzie Krocak, Ms. Marissa Vara, and Dr. Steven Lazarus.
Fellman, B.J., Basara, J.B., Christian, J.I., and Tye, M.R. Oral Presentation – 2023 Oklahoma NSF EPSCoR Annual State Conference. Abrupt Agricultural Flash Drought: An Investigation of Rapid Drought Development over Vital Agricultural Regions of the United States
Fellman, B.J., Basara, J.B., Christian, J.I., and Tye, M.R. Poster Presentation – 2023 American Meteorological Society Annual Conference. Abrupt Flash Drought: Investigating Flash Drought Occurrence over Vital Agricultural Regions
Fellman, B.J., Basara, J.B., Christian, J.I., and Tye, M.R. Poster Presentation – 2022 American Geophysical Union Conference. Abrupt Flash Drought: Investigating Flash Drought Occurrence over Vital Agricultural Regions
Fellman, B.J., Tyner, B., Devanas, A., and Stefanova, L. Poster Presentation - 2021 American Meteorological Society Student Conference. Synoptic-scale Influences on Observed Waterspout Frequency in the Florida Keys

Professional organizations

American Meteorological Society
Omicron Delta Kappa

Benjamin Fellman

Benjamin Fellman

Graduate Research Assistant

Graduate
Research Assistant