Off the Radar

What is the forecast for the 2026 hurricane season?

In this episode, we break down the newly-released 2026 Atlantic hurricane season outlook from Colorado State University (CSU), one of the most trusted long-range forecasts in meteorology.

Recorded at the National Tropical Weather Conference on South Padre Island, this episode features a conversation with Dr. Phil Klotzbach, lead researcher behind the CSU forecast.

We discuss why the 2026 hurricane season is expected to be below average, how a developing El Niño could impact storm activity, and why factors like vertical wind shear and sea surface temperatures play a critical role in seasonal forecasts.

You’ll also learn how El Niño vs. La Niña can influence where hurricanes form and track, including potential landfall patterns in the Gulf Coast, East Coast, and Caribbean.

Plus, a look at the history of the CSU hurricane outlook and the key variables that could still shift the forecast as the season approaches.

If you’re looking for the latest hurricane forecast, expert analysis, and what it means for the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, this episode breaks it all down!

On a hot afternoon in 1970, a single lightning strike on a Florida football field changed lives and reshaped how we think about storm safety.

In this episode of Off the Radar, we take a deeper look at one of nature’s most powerful and misunderstood forces.

First, lightning safety expert John Jensenius joins us to break down what actually keeps you safe in a storm - and the myths that can put people at risk.

Then, Dr. Tim Logan from Texas A&M explains how scientists are studying lightning in new ways. As the director of the Houston Lightning Mapping Array Network, he’s helped discover two of the longest lightning flashes ever recorded. He shares what those massive “megaflashes” reveal about storms, along with the questions scientists still can’t fully answer.

From safety to cutting-edge science, this episode explores what lightning can do, how to stay safe, and why it still leaves everyone (even experts!) in awe.

For the first time in more than 50 years, humans are preparing to venture back into deep space.

With the launch of Artemis II, part of NASA’s Artemis program, four astronauts will travel around the Moon aboard the Orion spacecraft, flying farther from Earth than any crew since the Apollo era. Powered by the Space Launch System (SLS), this historic mission marks a major step toward returning humans to the Moon and building a long-term presence beyond Earth.

In this episode, we explore what makes Artemis II different, why this mission matters right now, and how it connects the legacy of Apollo to the future of human spaceflight, including future lunar missions and Mars exploration.

We’re joined by planetary scientist Dr. Barbara Cohen of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, whose work on lunar samples, meteorites, and impact history helps us better understand the Moon and what it can teach us about Earth and the solar system.

Was last week’s severe weather forecast a “bust” - or was it just misunderstood?

The Storm Prediction Center is making changes to how it communicates severe weather risk, with a new focus on not just where storms could happen, but on how intense they might be. But with that shift comes a challenge: how do you convey higher-end potential without creating expectations that may not fully materialize?

In this episode, we break down a recent East Coast setup that left many wondering why a widely discussed severe threat didn’t result in a major outbreak everywhere it was forecast.

Joining the show is Evan Bentley from the Storm Prediction Center, who takes us inside how these outlooks are created, why they are rooted entirely in science and probability, and how they are designed to inform meteorologists and communicators.

We also explore the growing conversation around trust in forecasting: when things don’t play out as expected, should meteorologists apologize? Or is the real issue how forecasts are interpreted by the public?

This is a candid look at uncertainty, communication, and the responsibility of forecasting when severe weather is on the way!

For seventy-six years, Pluto was a planet. Then, in 2005, astronomer Dr. Mike Brown discovered Eris - a distant icy world roughly the same size as Pluto - forcing astronomers to confront a question they had quietly avoided for decades: what actually counts as a planet?

The answer led to the 2006 vote that redefined the solar system and stripped Pluto of its status, turning Brown into the unlikely public face of a controversial decision. 

But this story isn’t just about Pluto.

It’s about how scientific definitions evolve. It’s about the vast, largely unexplored region beyond Neptune known as the Kuiper Belt. And it’s about Brown’s current hunt for something even bigger: a massive, unseen ninth planet whose gravity may already be shaping the outer solar system.

In this episode, we go to the edge of our cosmic neighborhood with the astronomer who changed it - and may be on the verge of changing it again.