Innovative invention

By Althea Peterson

OU alumnus wins national competition with forecasting model

By Althea Peterson

Transcript Staff Writer

When innovative universities come to mind, some may consider Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or Yale.

But now, thanks to University of Oklahoma alumnus Matt Haugland, 26, OU will have to be mentioned among those universities. His innovative weather forecasting idea for more accurate temperature readings in specific locations won the grand prize at the Collegiate Inventors Competition.

Haugland, who graduated with his Ph.D. in meteorology from OU in May, said it was intimidating to be among students from such prestigious universities and with such quality inventions in medicine and biotechnology.

"It was amazing when I read the list of other inventions and the list of schools the other inventors were from," Haugland said. "To win against those other ones, that was amazing. To be honest, I didn't fit in very well with them."

Haugland smiles a little when noting how the other students wore suits and ties, while he wore casual clothes. However, his invention impressed the judges, who awarded him the $25,000 prize.

His invention is "The Uncoupled Surface Layer Model," which forecasts temperatures based on physical evidence, as opposed to statistics. Haugland said it allowed the forecasts to be based off local, area information, as opposed to statistics obtained from the nearest airport. The result? Location-specific forecasts, as opposed to general area forecasts, an idea tested by Weathernews in 13 locations in Japan.

"It predicted the temperatures 50 percent more accurately than what's currently forecast in Japan," Haugland said. "Statistical models only work at places where you can get statistics from. With my model, you can use it anywhere."

Haugland also tested his work initially on a five-acre plot of land in eastern Cleveland County and in different areas of California. In these tests, he saw 40 percent more accurate temperature forecasts than the current system.

"I wanted to see how it would work in a wide variety of situations," Haugland said. "There were very diverse microclimates."

Haugland credits the assistance he had from his adviser, OU Regents' Professor Ken Crawford, for obtaining the necessary instruments to complete his research. Crawford, however, credits Haugland's innovation.

"The basic ideas were his," Crawford said. "I understood what he was trying to accomplish, so I went to bat for him every chance I could.

Crawford said Haugland's model advances 40-year-old technology, making temperature forecasting more efficient and, in many cases, more accurate.

"Matt, as a team of one, comes in here with data from eastern Cleveland County and develops an entirely different paradigm shift and developed a completely new approach in a matter of about two years," Crawford said.

In the future, Haugland said he hopes to expand his model so it can track temperatures more efficiently, as well as during all times of the day. He said he does not plan to sell the invention, but rather, start his own company, "NanoWeather," in Norman to license use of the technology.

"I'm hoping that anytime you see a nighttime forecast, I'm hoping it would be based on this model," Haugland said. "I'm hoping it will lead to more local forecasts, not just forecasts for general areas."

And when people mention research and innovation, Haugland said he hopes his award turns faces toward Oklahoma.

"I think it reflects very well on the University of Oklahoma that we can compete and beat students at other schools and competitions. I think this is something that will help give Oklahoma the recognition it deserves in terms of research."

For samples of Haugland's forecasts, visit www.nanowx.com.

Althea Peterson 366-3539 apeterson@normantranscript.com