TV meteorologist offers weather course

    PRESQUE ISLE – If you’ve ever wondered why red skies in the evening are usually followed by beautiful, sunny days, Ted Shapiro may have just the class for you.    Shapiro, chief meteorologist for WAGM-TV, will be offering his course Introduction to Meteorology: A Field Course in Weather Observation, during the spring semester at the University of Maine at Presque Isle. The class will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1:40 to 2:55 p.m. in Folsom 303.
    This is Shapiro’s eighth year teaching the course. He previously taught it at Husson College in Bangor when he worked for WVII-TV. The meteorologist said that the main reason he teaches this course is because the clues people need for short-term weather forecasting are right in front of them and that anyone can be weather-wise just by knowing how to read the signs in the skies.
    “Learning about readily-available sky clues can really allow a person to make the best decision possible about their daily plans,” Shapiro said. “A non-weather-wise person might not be aware of early-day thunderstorm clues. Someone who takes my class would be – and, trust me, you don’t want to get caught out on a lake in a thunderstorm.”
    During the course, students will learn about basic weather systems – such as highs, lows and fronts – and how to identify clouds and interpret what they mean in terms of upcoming weather.
    As part of the course, Shapiro has his students keep a weather log, where they make a weather prediction based on their observations. Shapiro said one of his favorite parts of teaching the course is when a student makes a prediction and then the prediction turns out to be correct.
    “They are always amazed that you can actually use this stuff,” he said.
    Registration for the class – ENV 186 – begins the week of Nov. 12 for students and on Wednesday, Nov. 21 for non-degree students.
    Maine residents 65 and older qualify for a tuition waiver.
    For more information about signing up for this course or to ask about special enrollment opportunities, call 768-9519.