WeatherBrains Episode 1042 is now online (January 5th, 2026). If you are crazy about weather, this is THE podcast for you!

Our Guest WeatherBrain couldn’t make it tonight, so our panel holds a homegrown episode to kick off 2026.  Discussions include storm-based vs county-warnings, public storm reports, and a deep-dive into fundamentals of modern-day radar.

Our email officer Jen is continuing to handle the incoming messages from our listeners. Reach us here: email@weatherbrains.com.

• Severe storms possible on Friday in Deep South 1/9/26 (05:00)
• Storm-based warnings vs county-wide warnings (26:00)
• Pete Wolf Charitable Foundation (38:00)
• Helping the general public with radar interpretation (48:00)
• Public storm reports and how often they are used in NWS warnings (53:00)
• MPING (57:30)
• NWS app is needed (59:00)
• Protecting people living in mobile homes during severe weather (01:06:00)
• Threats-In-Motion (TIM) (01:08:00)
• Threat Confirmation Defined (01:14:00)
• Social media AI engagement farms (01:16:00)
• The Astronomy Outlook with Tony Rice (01:22:00)
• This Week in Tornado History With Jen (No segment this week)
• E-Mail Segment (01:24:00)
• and more!

Web Sites from Episode 1042:  

Alabama Weather Network

Picks of the Week:

James Aydelott – Out

Jen Narramore – WeatherBrains 224

Jen Narramore – WeatherBrains 998

Rick Smith – The Annual Lightning Report 2025

Troy Kimmel – US Drought Monitor From 2000-2025

Kim Klockow-McClain – Foghorn

John Gordon – Extreme Temperatures Around The World

Bill Murray – Out

James Spann – AEM Releases 2025 U.S. Lightning Report

The WeatherBrains crew includes your host, James Spann, plus other notable geeks like Troy Kimmel, Bill Murray, Rick Smith, James Aydelott, Jen Narramore, John Gordon, and Dr. Kim Klockow-McClain. They bring together a wealth of weather knowledge and experience for another fascinating podcast about weather.