From Jet Streaks and Cold Fronts to Buoyant Jets and Fire Fronts

According to the Call for Papers, the Daniel Keyser Symposium ‘will explore and integrate three dimensions of Dan’s career: his fundamental contributions to the field of synoptic–dynamic meteorology; his applied contributions to the fields of weather forecasting and fire-weather research; and his commitment and dedication to atmospheric-science education’. In this talk, I will attempt to weave all three of these dimensions into a coherent story via the somewhat unique trajectory of my own career, which Dan is almost entirely responsible for launching. I arrived at SUNY from the UK in 1993 with a background and interest not only in synoptic-dynamic meteorology, but also mathematics and fluid mechanics. Dan actively encouraged and fostered the growth of all facets of my background, and prepared me with a broad set of fundamental skills that have allowed me to navigate a wide range of topics and sectors in the subsequent decades, including: coupled fire-atmosphere modeling and the dynamics of fires and plumes; computational fluid dynamics of complex flow problems in the oil and gas industry; and most recently catastrophe modeling for wildfire risk. I will show some examples of basic research and real-world industrial applications that illustrate these topics and will discuss the impact that Dan’s education and mentorship has had on my approach to solving these problems.