November 1, 2006

Leigh grad invents new weather forecasting technique

Matthew Haugland, a San Jose, Calif. native, Leigh High School grad and University of Oklahoma student, is the 2006 grand prizewinner of the Collegiate Inventors Competition, a program of the National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation.

Haugland’s work, which departs from existing conventional wisdom in the field, involves accurately predicting nighttime temperatures, currently a challenge in any area that involves microclimates. He receives a $25,000 prize, and his advisor, Dr. Kenneth Crawford, receives $3,000.

Haugland, 26, presented his invention to a final panel of seven judges, including inductees of the National Inventors Hall of Fame. His research promises hope to areas that rely on accurate temperature prediction, including agriculture and transportation.

Haugland’s recent work has focused on a 5-acre plot of land that he bought specifically for the purpose of studying microclimates. Originally a student at San Jose State University, Haugland transferred to the University of Oklahoma where he was able to afford the purchase of land for his study.

He installed weather stations across his land, and based on observations from these stations, developed a weather-forecasting technique that more accurately predicts nighttime temperatures using standard topographical maps and existing weather stations.

“I’m hoping that this model will help improve weather forecasts around the world,” he says. The implications of his work are broad, from helping farmers protect their crops from frost and freezing, to helping predict nighttime fog formation, a major weather-related cause of death.

Haugland now hopes to run a successful business focused on microclimates and microscale weather forecasting. He already has received interest internationally for his work.

As a child in San Jose, Haugland remembers that his parents gave him a small thermometer that he used to measure the temperature in different spots around his yard. Although the yard wasn’t large, he was fascinated by the temperature differences. As he grew older, he became fascinated by the microclimates of the San Francisco Bay region and the reasons behind them.

“The idea of innovation really motivates me,” Haugland said. “Growing up in Silicon Valley, I was surrounded by a culture of finding new ways of doing things.” Even as a child, Haugland thought about working with the weather, as when he planted cacti in his yard in hopes they would turn the land into a desert. Today, Haugland notes that he is often thinking about the way weather works and new ways of predicting it.

Haugland graduated from Leigh in 1997. After two years at San Jose State, he transferred to the University of Oklahoma, receiving his bachelor’s degree in 2001, his masters degree in 2002 and his Ph.D. in May of 2006, all in meteorology. His parents, James and Holly Haugland, continue to reside in the San Jose area.

Final judging of the contest took place on Oct. 18, with four undergraduate teams competing for the $10,000 prize, seven graduate teams competing for a $15,000 prize, and all 11 teams competing for the $25,000 grand prize. The teams each made presentations before the final panel of judges.

In total, the competition received over 100 entries from over 70 colleges and universities for this year’s competition. A first round of judges evaluated entries in order to select the 11 finalists, evaluating each on the originality of the new idea, process or technology, as well as the potential value and usefulness to society.