Dr. Martin Baxter (Marty)

Assistant Professor of Meteorology

Central Michigan University
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
314 Brooks Hall
Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859

Office: (989) 774-2055
Secretary: (989) 774-3179
Fax: (989) 774-2142

I am currently in my sixth-year of a tenure track position. I did my graduate work at Saint Louis University. I have held forecasting, research, and teaching internships at Weather or Not, Inc. in Shawnee, KS, the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center in Washington, D.C., and the Cooperative Program for Operational Meteorology, Education, and Training in Boulder, CO. The most recent copy of my CV can be found here.

If you are a student looking for course web pages, please go to Blackboard.

Teaching

I am the primary instructor for Synoptic Meteorology at CMU. I was recently awarded CMU's Excellence in Teaching Award.

Fall 2011

MET 340: Synoptic Meteorology I (Students: Click here for forecasting pages and links!!)
MET 240: Introductory Meteorology

Spring 2011

MET 480: Numerical Weather Prediction
MET 315: Computer Applications in Meteorology
MET 345: Synoptic Meteorology II

Research

My research has focused on improving our understanding of precipitation systems. In particular, I have examined the climatology of snow to liquid ratio and methods for forecasting this quantity. My dissertation research involved determining the effects of upstream convection on mesoscale banded snowfall. Of late I have become more interested in how numerical weather prediction can best be used in operational forecasting. I consider myself a synoptic meteorologist who is more interested in mesoscale processes, rather than planetary/climate scale processes.

I have a history of mentoring both undergraduate and graduate research. Three undergraduate students have placed in the poster competition at the National Weather Association Annual Meeting. To learn more about my research, and how you might get involved, please contact me via email.

Research Grants


• "Climatology and conceptual models of snowfall distribution in cold-season Central U.S. cyclones", $16,686 from the National Weather Service through the COMET Partners Program
• "Variability of the Influence of Convection on Conveyor Belts: Development of Conceptual Models and Forecast Methodologies", $14,275 from the National Weather Service through the COMET Partners Program
• "The Relative Contributions of Intrinsic and Practical Predictability to Model Forecasts of Cyclone Development" $14,912 from the CMU President's Research Investment Fund

Publications


• Bunkers, M.J. and M.A. Baxter, 2011: Radar Tornadic Debris Signatures on 27 April 2011, Electronic Journal of Operational Meteorology, published online as 2011-ION1.
• Baxter, M.A., 2011: Impacts of Very Small Initial Condition Errors on Mesoscale Aspects of Two Cyclones, Electronic Journal of Operational Meteorology,published online as 2011-EJ1.
• Baxter, M.A., 2011: Reforecasts of a 2004 Elevated Convection Event Misforecast by the Eta Model, National Weather Digest, in press.
• Baxter, M.A., P. N. Schumacher, and J. M. Boustead, 2011: The Use of Potential Vorticity Inversion to Evaluate the Effect of Precipitation on Downstream Mesoscale Processes, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society, 137, 179-198. PDF file available upon request
• Baxter, M.A., C.E. Graves, and J.T. Moore, December 2006: A Physically-Based Method for Diagnosing Snow to Liquid Ratio Using Climatology, National Weather Digest, 30, 29-44.
• Baxter, M.A., C.E. Graves, and J.T. Moore, 2005: A Climatology of Snow to Liquid Ratio for the Contiguous United States, Weather and Forecasting, 20, 729-744.
• Ratley, C.W., A.R. Lupo and M.A. Baxter, 2002: Determining the Spring to Summer Transition in the Missouri Ozarks Using Synoptic Scale Atmospheric Data, Transactions of the Missouri Academy of Sciences, 36, 55-62.

Undergraduate Research


• "Evaluation of the Mesoscale Convective Vortex of August 11-12, 2010" by Adam Picard
• "Analysis of Microphysics Scheme Performance with the October 2006 Buffalo Snowstorm" by Mike Piatek-Jimenez
• "Accuracy of a Local WRF-ARW Model Run for the 22-24 December 2007 Cyclone Using the New Model Evaluation Tools Verification Package" by Kimberly Hoogewind
• "The Spatial and Temporal Variability in Snow-to-Liquid Ratio Across Michigan" by Rachel Kulik
• "Effects of Precipitation Events on the Frequency and Duration of Combined Sewer Overflows in Selected Michigan Communities" by Kailey Wass
• "Accuracy of a WRF Simulation of the 12 June 2001 Mesoscale Convective System" by Brandon Hoving
• "A Case Study of a Surprise Elevated Convection Event Over Eastern Missouri: 24-25 July 2004" by Michelle Keast

Graduate Research


• "Verification of the Northeastern United States Heavy Snowfall Conceptual Model", Chad Gravelle, Phd in Meteorology (degree conferred, August 2011), Saint Louis University
• "A Composite Analysis of Heavy Snow Events Within the Central and Eastern United States", Jayson Gosselin, MS in Meteorology (degree conferred July 2010), Saint Louis University

Service

I am involved in a variety of university and professional service activities:

University


• Faculty Advisor to the Student Chapter of American Meteorological Society
• Academic Advisor to Meteorology Students
• Former member of the Science and Technology Residential College Advisory Board and the CMU First Year Experience Advisory Council

Professional


• 2011 Editor of the Electronic Journal of Operational Meteorology, published by the National Weather Association
• Member of the Unidata Users Committee
• Serve as lecturer to professional forecasters at the Cooperative Program for Operational Meteorology, Education, and Training including the National Weather Service Mesoscale Analysis and Prediction course and the Meteorological Services of Canada Winter Weather course
• Routinely present to National Weather Service forecasters at local offices
• Member of the National Weather Association Weather Analysis and Forecasting, Publications, and Membership & Marketing Committees
• Past president of the Greater St. Louis Chapter of the American Meteorological Society

Personal

My wife and I were married June 19th, 2004. We recently purchased a house in Mt. Pleasant, MI, and live with our 2 cats. I enjoy camping and backpacking, and have hiked in New York, Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Colorado, California, Missouri, Illinois and Michigan. I am also a St. Louis Cardinals, Kansas City Chiefs, and Missouri Tigers fan. In my spare time I enjoy watercolor painting, especially landscapes and weather-related scenes.

Last updated: Tue Aug 27 10:30 pm 2011