Quick BitesHometown: Morrison, Ill.Education: Bachelor’s degree in communications, Northern Illinois University; broadcast meteorology program of Mississippi State University.Career: 20-plus years in television news, more than 12 as meteorologist/reporter at WRCB-TV.Personal: He and his wife, Sandie, have one daughter. Hobbies include cycling, scuba diving, hiking, photography.Favorite animal antic at the Tennessee Aquarium: Cuttlefish feeding. It is absolutely amazing to watch a cuttlefish swim over to a piece of food and, in a blink of an eye, shoot its feeding tentacles out and grab the morsel. It will make you say “Wow!” every time.People would be surprised to know: The aquarium’s animals consume more than 45,000 pounds of restaurant-quality seafood.When handling a groundhog: Always keep plenty of kale or yams handy. A happy groundhog is a well-fed groundhog.
For more than a decade, TV viewers relied on meteorologist Thom Benson’s mastery of Doppler Radar to provide accurate weather forecasts.
Yet on one day each year — Groundhog Day, Feb. 2 — all eyes turned to a furry forecaster in Pennsylvania to predict spring’s arrival.
Mr. Benson said he has always been intrigued by weather history and weather folklore such as the groundhog seeing its shadow.
Now, in his current position as communications manager at the Tennessee Aquarium, he has merged the two into a new program, “The Wild Side of Weather,” which will be presented this month at the riverfront attraction.