James Ruppert, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor (he/him)
jruppert@ou.edu, CV, Google Scholar
Office: National Weather Center (NWC) 5331

James joined the faculty of OU’s School of Meteorology in 2021. He received his Ph.D. from Colorado State University in 2015 and held a postdoc position from 2015–18 at the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology in Hamburg, Germany. Before coming to OU he was an assistant research professor at Penn State. His main research interests include convective storms and their interactions with large-scale circulation. A central topic of emphasis in his research lately is cloud–radiation feedback. In his free time he enjoys spending time with family, being outdoors, and seeking out great local food.

Kathryn Giesa
Graduate Research Assistant, Ph.D. Student
Co-advised by Steven Cavallo
kegiesa@ou.edu

Kathryn joined the Convective Storm Dynamics Group in August of 2024. She grew up Pennsylvania, giving her the experience of summertime thunderstorms, snowfall, and tropical cyclones. Growing up, she found her passion of watching the radar and storms come in from the windows. She originally had a passion in climate science, which was found in geography. She received her B.S. in Geography at Pennsylvania State University, with minors in Climatology and GIScience. She then received her M.S. in Geography at University of Delaware studying tropical climate teleconnections. During that time, she decided that meteorology is her true passion, and decided to pursue her P.h.D. in atmospheric science at University of Oklahoma. She is working with Dr. James Ruppert and Dr. Steven Cavallo to improve the predictability and modeling of mid-latitude blocking events. Outside of work, she likes to hike, run, and go on adventures with friends!

Emily Luschen
Graduate Research Assistant, Ph.D. Student
emily.w.luschen-1@ou.edu

Emily joined the Convective Storm Dynamics group in August 2021. As a native Oklahoman, she grew up fascinated by the weather. However, it was not until Emily’s first year of college when her love of math drove her to the field of meteorology. Before pursuing her M.S., Emily earned an A.S. in Physics at Oklahoma City Community College (OCCC) and a B.S. in Meteorology at OU. As an undergraduate, she worked as a math tutor at OCCC and managed data for the Oklahoma Lightning Mapping Array. In her free time, Emily enjoys laughing at her own jokes and rewatching episodes of Community.

Hrag Najarian
Graduate Research Assistant, Ph.D. Candidate
Co-advised by Naoko Sakaeda
hrag.najarian@ou.edu

Hrag joined the Convective Storm Dynamics group in the Spring of 2022. He was born in Lebanon but then moved to Los Angeles at the age of 5. Soon after, he became fascinated by the weatherman’s ability to predict the future which sparked a passion that grew out of hand. He completed his B.S. in Atmospheric Sciences at the University of California, Davis in the Summer of 2018, and then his M.S. in Meteorology at the University of Oklahoma in the Fall of 2021, studying cloud-radiative effects within the Madden-Julian Oscillation. He is now pursuing his Ph.D. working alongside Dr. James Ruppert and Dr. Naoko Sakaeda to continue to understand cloud-radiative interactions on a diurnal time scale within the seasonal-subseasonal timescale over the Maritime Continent through numerical modeling.

Wayne (Yuan-Huai) Tsai
Graduate Research Assistant, Ph.D. Candidate
Co-advised by Naoko Sakaeda
wayne.yhtsai@ou.edu

Wayne joined the Convective Storm Dynamics group in the fall of 2023. He was born and raised in Taiwan. Wayne completed his B.S. in Earth Sciences at National Taiwan Normal University and his M.S. in Atmospheric Sciences at National Taiwan University. His interest in tropical climates was sparked during his master’s research, where he studied how tropical waves influence rainfall extremes on subseasonal timescales, evaluating their predictability in the subseasonal-to-seasonal (S2S) prediction models. Currently, he is pursuing his Ph.D. and working with Prof. Naoko Sakaeda and Prof. James Ruppert. His research primarily explores how the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) modulates diurnal processes over tropical islands, while also assessing the ability of S2S prediction models to capture these characteristics.

Kayla Wheeler
Graduate Research Assistant, Ph.D. Student
Co-advised by Ben Schenkel
kwheeler2@ou.edu

Kayla joined the Convective Storm Dynamics group in Fall 2023. Growing up in upstate New York, she was simultaneously fascinated and terrified of summertime thunderstorms. As she grew up, she also developed a passion for communications, which inspired her to pursue a degree in meteorology to marry her two interests and become a broadcast meteorologist. She earned her B.S. at the University at Albany with a major in Atmospheric Science and minor in Spanish. Undergraduate research inspired her to change her career path, bringing her to the University of Oklahoma in Fall 2021 to pursued an M.S.. She is now pursuing her Ph.D. with a focus on tropical cyclone tornadoes working alongside Dr. James Ruppert and Dr. Benjamin Schenkel. In her free time, Kayla enjoys running and spending time with her 2 cats and guinea pig.

Mac Syrett
Graduate Research Assistant, M.S. Student
mac.syrett@ou.edu

Mac joined the Convective Storm Dynamics group in January of 2024. He was born in Houston, Texas, where he was fascinated by the thunderstorms and occasional hurricanes there. He decided to follow this interest and study at OU, where he earned a B.S. in Meteorology and a B.A. in Mathematics, along with a minor in German. He is now pursuing his M.S. in Meteorology at OU with Dr. James Ruppert, working on understanding tropical convection and mid-level stable layers using data from the PICCOLO field campaign. In his free time, Mac enjoys playing guitar and bass, as well as card and board games.

Colin Welty
Graduate Research Assistant, M.S. Student
colinwelty@ou.edu

Colin joined the Convective Storm Dynamics Group in November 2022. He was born and raised in the northern suburbs of Dallas, Texas. From reading books about clouds with his grandmother at a young age to watching GFS runs in high school, Colin has always been fascinated with all modes of extreme weather. Currently, Colin is researching the role of the diurnal cycle in the overland intensification of Tropical Storm Erin (2007) using WRF model simulations. Outside of research, Colin enjoys listening to music, political engagement, traveling, and watching sports with his friends.

Andrew Muehr
Undergraduate Researcher, B.S. Student
andrew.j.muehr-1@ou.edu

Andrew Muehr joined the Convective Storm Dynamics group in October 2021. Andrew grew up in the Milwaukee area and was fascinated with all forms of weather from a young age, especially severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. He is currently researching the relationship between the hodograph, updraft and precipitation qualities, and tornado potential, fitting with his interest in severe storm environments. In his free time, he plays on the OU Club Soccer Team, spends time with friends and family, and immerses himself in extreme weather.

Katharina Schmitt
Visiting Researcher, M.S. Student
katharina.f.schmitt-1@ou.edu

Katharina joined the Convective Storm Dynamics Group in August 2024 as an exchange student. Born and raised in Germany, she completed her B.Sc. in Physics (specializing in meteorology, oceanography and geosciences) at Christian-Albrechts University and is currently pursuing an M.Sc. in Atmospheric Science at the University of Hamburg. Katharina’s fascination with the Earth system began early with her first book about natural disasters and weather extremes at the age of six. Initially captivated by volcanoes, her interests shifted to meteorology when she started gliding at the age of fifteen. Her interest in tropical meteorology was sparked during her work at the Max-Planck-Institut and her bachelor thesis where she analyzed data from a tropical research campaign. Currently, she collaborates with Dr. James Ruppert, Dr. Naoko Sakaeda and Dr. Raphaela Vogel (University of Hamburg) to understand the role of the diurnal cycle in development and intensification of tropical cyclones using WRF model simulations. Outside of research, Katharina enjoys gliding, climbing, and spending quality time with her family and friends.