Brandon Smith

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Brandon Smith

Research Associate

brandon.r.smith-1@ou.edu
brandon.r.smith@noaa.gov
National Weather Center 3920G

Education

MS, Geoinformatics, University of Oklahoma
BS, Meteorology, University of Oklahoma

Affiliated CIWRO Team

Precipitation & Advanced Radar Studies

About

Brandon is a member of the Precipitation & Advanced Radar Studies (PARS) Team. His research mainly focuses on the development of single-radar applications for the WSR-88D radar network and phased array radar, as well as multi-radar applications for the Multi-Radar/Multi-Sensor (MRMS) system. These applications largely focus on identifying rotation within radar observations of severe thunderstorms.

Research Focus

Radar observations of severe storms and tornadoes
Single-radar application development (WSR-88D, phased array)
Multi-Radar Multi-Sensor (MRMS) application development
Research-to-Operations (R2O)

CIWRO Research Themes

Weather Radar and Observations

Publications

Sandmæl, T. N., B. R. Smith, J. G. Madden, J. W. Monroe, P. T. Hyland, B. A. Schenkel, T. C. Meyer, 2023: The 2021 Hazardous Weather Testbed Experimental Warning Program Radar Convective Applications Experiment: A Forecaster Evaluation of the Tornado Probability Algorithm and the New Mesocyclone Detection Algorithm. Weather and Forecasting, 38, 7, 1125–1142, doi:10.1175/WAF-D-23-0042.1.
Sandmæl, T. N., B. R. Smith, A. E. Reinhart, I. M. Schick, M. C. Ake, J. G. Madden, R. B. Steeves, S. S. Williams, K. L. Elmore, T. C. Meyer, 2023: The Tornado Probability Algorithm: A Probabilistic Machine Learning Tornadic Circulation Detection Algorithm. Weather and Forecasting, 38, doi:10.1175/WAF-D-22-0123.1.
Smith, B. R., T. Sandmæl, M. C. Mahalik, K. L. Elmore, D. M. Kingfield, K. L. Ortega, and T. M. Smith, 2021: Corrigendum. Wea. Forecasting, 36, 1131–1133, https://doi.org/10.1175/WAF-D-20-0125.1.
Mahalik, M. C., B. R. Smith, K. L. Elmore, D. M. Kingfield, K. L. Ortega, T. M. Smith, 2019: Estimates of Gradients in Radar Moments Using a Linear Least Squares Derivative Technique. Weather and Forecasting, 34, 415–434, doi:10.1175/WAF-D-18-0095.1.
Martinaitis, S. M., J. J. Gourley, Z. L. Flamig, E. M. Argyle, R. A. Clark, A. Arthur, B. R. Smith, J. M. Erlingis, S. Perfater, B. Albright, 2017: The HMT Multi-Radar Multi-Sensor Hydro Experiment. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 98, 347–359, doi:10.1175/BAMS-D-15-00283.1.
Burgess, D. W., K. Ortega, G. Stumpf, G. Garfield, C. Karstens, T. Meyer, B. Smith, D. Speheger, J. LaDue, R. Smith, T. Marshall, 2014: 20 May 2013 Moore, Oklahoma, Tornado: Damage Survey and Analysis. Weather and Forecasting, 29, 1229–1237, doi:10.1175/WAF-D-14-00039.1.

Conference presentations

Smith, B. R., 2025: An Automated Method to Calculate Mesocyclone Vertical Alignment, Symposium on Radar Research to Operations, Amer. Meteor. Soc., 7.1.
Smith, B. R. and T. Sandmæl, 2023: Generating Statistical and Probabilistic Guidance for the New Mesocyclone Detection Algorithm, National Weather Association 48th Annual Meeting, Kansas City, MO.
Smith, B. R., 2022: From Concept to Final Product - The New Mesocyclone Detection Algorithm Proposed for the WSR-88D. NWA 47th Annual Meeting, Nat. Weather Assoc.
Smith, B. R., 2020: The New Mesocyclone Detection Algorithm Proposed for the WSR-88D Radar Network - Development Update. NWA 45th Annual Meeting, Nat. Weather Assoc.
Smith, B. R., B. Smith, R. Thompson, I. Jirak, M. Mahalik, 2019: The Conditional Probability of Tornado Intensity Algorithm (CPTI). 44th NWA Annual Meeting, Nat. Weather Assoc., P1.66.
Smith, B.R., 2018: Examination of the New Mesocyclone Detection Algorithm Proposed for the WSR-88D Radar Network. 43rd NWA Annual Meeting, Nat. Weather Assoc., H.3.
Smith, B.R. and K. L. Ortega, 2017: An Updated Radar-Based Storm Rotation Climatology for the CONUS. 38th Conference on Radar Meteorology, Amer. Meteor. Soc., 178.
Smith, B.R., K. L. Ortega, A. E. Reinhart, M. C. Mahalik, and T. M. Smith, 2017: A Reflectivity Climatology Study of the Contiguous United States Using the Multi-Year Reanalysis of Remotely Sensed Storms (MYRORSS). 28th Conf. on Weather Analysis and Forecasting (WAF)/24th Conf. on Numerical Weather Prediction (NW), Amer. Meteor. Soc., 99.
Smith, B. R., M. C. Mahalik, D. M. Kingfield, K. L. Ortega, T. M. Smith, 2016: Application of a Range-Based Correction to Improve Azimuthal Shear Values at Distance from a WSR-88D Radar. 41st NWA Annual Meeting, Nat. Weather Assoc., A.47.