2018 Shark Tank Events

Supported by the NOAA Central Region Collaboration Team

S HARK TANK BACKGROUND

The greatest achievements start with an idea. Encouraging those ide-

as within NOAA is not always an easy task, especially when re-

searchers and operational forecasters don’t have many opportunities to

talk about ideas with each other in an organized way. To foster early

communication and collaboration between OAR researchers and NWS

operations staff, the NOAA Central Region Collaboration Team developed

Shark Tank events in FY 2017, held at the National Weather Center in Nor-

man, OK and at the David Skaggs Research Center in Boulder, CO.

W HAT IS THE SHARK TANK ALL ABOUT?

It is an innovative way for researchers and NWS forecasters to

share ideas and explore an opportunity to improve communica-

tions. Modeled after the popular TV show “Shark Tank,” a panel of sub-

ject-matter-experts is the centerpiece of the event. Representatives

from NWS field operations, NWS headquarters and OAR researchers

share their expertise in an environment designed to nurture ideas.

F OSTERING COLLABORATION

Audience members view the events, coming in and out at their leisure

and are invited to participate in question and answer sessions, as

well as networking after the conclusion of each event to meet and greet

with the Sharks and participants. Connections built as a result of these

opportunities have resulted in several outcomes:

A researcher performing high-resolution smoke modeling was invited to a

previously unknown workshop related to his idea.

A wind profiling radar is now providing real-time hourly wind profiles to

the NWS Weather Forecast Office in Boulder .

Laboratory researchers connected with NWS leadership as well as others

in the same building to share datasets or other mechanisms to help ad-

vance collaboration.

A researcher working on winter weather forecasting technique was con-

nected to multiple states as well as awarded $50,000 toward testing the

idea for integration readiness.

Shark Tank Objective:

Provide an opportunity for

researchers and forecasters to engage with

OAR and NWS staff to bridge the gap

between research and operations.

2018 Shark Tank Events

Supported by the NOAA Central Region Collaboration Team

S EASON TWO

Shark Tank events were renewed for a second season and com-

pleted again in Norman, OK on February 8, 2018 and in Boulder, CO on

February 22, 2018. Ten pitches were presented and Sharks suggested

points for consideration and new areas to explore, provided valuable

feedback, and offered to facilitate connections. Six ideas were selected

to pair with a Shark Mentor and advance to a Final Event in Silver

Spring. These include:

AiRNet (Airborne Radar Network): A potential solution to fill the gaps in NEXRAD

(JJ Gourley)

Quantitative Precipitation Estimates from GOES-16 in the Western USA (Don McGorman)

EnSOMble Forecasting:

What Machine Learning Can Teach Us About Tornado Prediction (Burkely T. Gallo / Alexandra Anderson - Frey)

When the WSR-88D Lies

(Steve Piltz)

Look Out the Windows, Sillies! (Taneil Uttal)

Use of Ground- and Space-based Visible Imagery with Other Data

for Model Evaluation and Assimilation

(Steve Albers)

S HARK TANK FINALS AND AWARDS CEREMONY

On July 17, 2018, the selected participants from the Norman and

Boulder events will present at the NOAA Auditorium in Silver Spring,

MD. The final event will be hosted by the NWS Office of Science and

Technology Integration in partnership with the NOAA Central Region

Collaboration Team and OAR. It will feature a panel of Sharks selected

to represent specific areas of expertise including radar operations,

modeling, research program and lab experience, dissemination, and

NWS science operations. The Shark Tank Finals will include discussion

time with the audience and feature a presentation on the NWS Capabili-

ties and Requirements Decision Support (CaRDS) process. The event

will conclude with a meet-and-greet session and award ceremony

where the idea selected for a research funding award (final amount

TBD) will be announced.

“Good, fast-paced, and interesting way to hear new

research ideas / feedback from the experts (sharks).”

- Audience member