Off the Radar

Behind every chatbot response, AI-generated image, and large language model is a vast network of data centers consuming enormous amounts of electricity and water. In this episode, Emily talks with Dr. Amanda Smith of Project Drawdown about the hidden environmental footprint of generative AI and what it means for a warming, resource-constrained world.

Dr. Smith explains how data centers operate, why they are often located where power is cheap and reliable, and why water remains the most efficient way to cool the servers that power today’s AI systems. We unpack the difference between carbon footprints and water footprints, explore why training AI models is especially energy intensive, and clarify common misconceptions about how much water tools like ChatGPT actually use.

The key question is not whether we should use AI, but how we use it. Thoughtful deployment, smarter infrastructure, and informed users will shape whether generative AI becomes part of the climate problem or part of the solution.

For more than a century, the Winter Olympics have depended on cold, reliable conditions. But as the planet warms, that foundation is becoming harder to find.

As the Games return to Northern Italy, this episode of Off the Radar examines how climate change is reshaping the future of winter sports. Meteorologist Emily Gracey speaks with Dr. Daniel Scott of the University of Waterloo, whose research shows a rapidly shrinking list of cities capable of hosting the Winter Olympics safely and fairly.

We explore why warmer temperatures mean more than just artificial snow, how deteriorating snow and ice increase risks for athletes, and why the Paralympic Games face even steeper challenges as competition moves deeper into warmer months.

With fewer cold places left on the map, the question is no longer theoretical. Can the Winter Olympics survive in a warming climate, and what decisions made today will determine their future?

The future of weather forecasting is being built right now.

Recorded on site at the annual meeting of the American Meteorological Society in Houston, this conversation with Ken Graham, Director of the National Weather Service, looks at where meteorology has been, where it is headed, and what it will take to get there.

This year’s conference theme, “Fast and Slow Thinking: the Human Factor in a Rapidly Changing World,” took on added meaning as a major winter storm disrupted travel and kept some participants away. But it did not slow the collaboration, innovation, and urgency inside the meeting rooms.

Ken Graham shares how artificial intelligence is transforming weather models, why partnerships across the weather enterprise matter more than ever, and how modern communication, from weather radios to social media, plays a critical role when it matters most. He also talks about the energy he sees across the National Weather Service, the next wave of talent coming in, and why he is genuinely excited about the year ahead. It is a conversation about technology, trust, and turning forecasts into action.

Climate science is most often communicated through charts, graphs, and visual models. But data does not have to be seen to be understood.

In this episode, meteorologist Emily Gracey explores how climate data can be translated into sound. Emily is joined by mathematician and musician Harlan Brothers, who creates climate sonifications by converting real datasets into music and audio you can hear.

Using measurements such as global temperature over land, sea surface temperatures, and sea level rise, Harlan turns long term warming trends into melodies that reveal patterns over time. The conversation looks at how sonification works, why sound can engage people differently than visuals, and how music can add a new dimension to climate communication without compromising scientific integrity.

Throughout the episode, listeners will hear examples of these climate sonifications woven into the discussion, offering a chance to experience climate data through a different sense.

Alaska is warming faster than any other U.S. state- nearly four times the global rate. Permafrost that's been frozen for thousands of years is thawing. Villages are sinking. Homes are floating away. And Indigenous communities are paying the highest price.

In this episode, meteorologist Emily Gracey talks with Rick Thoman, one of the foremost experts on Alaskan climate and weather, about the extreme events reshaping the state. From the unprecedented remnants of Typhoon Halong that displaced over a thousand people in October 2025, to the disappearing Bering Sea ice and collapsing salmon populations, Rick walks us through what the data tells us about Alaska's rapidly transforming climate, and why what's happening at the top of the world matters for all of us.

This is part one of a two-part series on Alaska's changing climate. Part two will explore the impact to Tribal communities in the state.