Reed Timmer

about the author

Author of Into the Storm and Star of Discovery Channel's Storm Chasers

Biography
Press

As the star of Discovery Channel’s top-rated show Storm Chasers, Reed Timmer has experienced firsthand some of the most violent weather of recent years, often risking his life to face down the deadliest storms.

Reed found his calling at age thirteen when golf ball–sized hail destroyed the family video camera as he documented a severe storm in the front yard. He’s been following extreme weather ever since. Both in and out of the storm spotter community, Reed is arguably the best known chaser today, having tracked many tornadoes ranked F5—the top scale for strength and destruction—as well as some of the most powerful hurricanes in United States history, including Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita.

With the number of United States tornadoes averaging well above 1,000 annually, and predictions for another very strong hurricane season, the frequency of apocalyptic weather conditions has raised concern among meteorological scientists and the public beyond. Reed’s daring attitude—one that leads him time and time again directly into the path of oncoming tornadoes—allows him to shoot the best footage, gather otherwise unobtainable information, and contribute to meteorological research and technology. It was Reed and his team who developed the TVN Tornado Probe, the first apparatus to capture high-definition video from inside a tornado, and the TVN Dominator, an armored research vehicle designed to measure vertical winds at the base of tornadoes.

In addition to storm chasing year-round, Reed is currently completing a PhD in meteorology at the University of Oklahoma. He is also the founder of TornadoVideos.net, a company devoted to extreme storm documentation and research.

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