Sean Waugh

Sean Waugh
Sean Waugh (fourth from left) standing next to the cast and director of Twisters
Occupation	Meteorologist
Known for	Severe weather research Tornado consultant on Twisters Storm chasing

Sean Waugh is an American meteorologist and research scientist with the National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL), the research branch of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for severe weather. ^{[1] [2]}

Education

Waugh received a Bachelor, Masters, and a PhD in meteorology from the University of Oklahoma. ^[3]

Career

In August 2020, Waugh was part of a four-scientist team researching Hurricane Laura from the air, land, on the internet, and through computer models. Waugh launched weather balloons, which measured winds up to 140 miles per hour (225 km/h). ^[4]

Between March 2023–July 2024, Waugh worked as a Tornado Consultant for Universal Pictures, building props and consulting on Twisters , an American disaster film starring Daisy Edgar-Jones, Glen Powell, and Anthony Ramos. ^{[5] [6] [7] [8]}

In 2024, Waugh constructed the NSSL Hail Camera Truck, as a way to research hail. The truck is equipped with two cameras and eight LED spotlights, which are 30% brighter than the sun. ^{[9] [10]}

References

1. Jones, Judson (19 July 2024). "In 'Twisters,' Storm Chasers Want to Disrupt a Tornado. Is That Possible?". The New York Times . Retrieved 16 July 2025.
2. Vinney, Cynthia (22 July 2024). "How a Real-Life Storm Chaser Helped Inspire Twisters". Valnet . Retrieved 16 July 2025.
3. Waugh, Sean. "Sean Waugh". LinkedIn. Retrieved 16 July 2025.
4. "Tales from the storm: how four scientists tracked Hurricane Laura". Science . American Association for the Advancement of Science. 28 August 2020. Retrieved 16 July 2025.
5. "'Twisters' movie: NOAA tornado science and staff behind the scenes". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 3 March 2025. Retrieved 16 July 2025.
6. Drost, Philip (1 August 2024). "How a meteorologist helped make Twisters' storm-chasing science as real as possible". CBC.ca . Canadian Broadcasting Corporation . Retrieved 16 July 2025.
7. Hancock, Andrea (19 July 2024). "Meet the 'Mets': The local scientists behind 'Twisters'". The Norman Transcript .
8. Wood, Anthony R. (3 August 2024). "'Twisters' gets high marks for science, but with some questionable spins, tornado experts say". The Philadelphia Inquirer . Retrieved 16 July 2025.
9. Mahan, Ken (1 May 2025). "For the first time, cutting-edge technology captures incredible shots of falling hail". The Boston Globe . Retrieved 16 July 2025.
10. Breasette, Austin (2 May 2025). "NOAA researcher builds device to capture hail size, speed as it falls". KFOR-TV . NBC . Retrieved 16 July 2025.