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NEWS: CSU Homecoming schedule 2022
RAM REUNION
CSU Homecoming schedule 2022
By Sam Hutton
@csucollegian
Colorado State University is hosting its annual Homecoming & Family Weekend beginning Oct. 13. The weekend encompasses activities for members of the CSU and Fort Collins communities and visitors.
Below is a comprehensive schedule of CSU events planned for the weekend. Homecoming & Family Weekend Kickoff
Homecoming & Family Weekend will begin with a kickoff event from 4-6 p.m. Oct. 13 at the New Belgium Porch in Canvas Stadium and will feature performances highlighting past CSU achievements and memories. The event will include food trucks, photo opportunities and a bar. Distinguished Alumni Awards
Continuing Oct. 13 at the Lory Student Center Theatre will be a celebration of distinguished alumni put on by the Colorado State University Alumni Association from 5-9 p.m. The event brings attention, recognition and appreciation to alumni who have excelled professionally, upheld the values of CSU and contributed to the CSU community. Parent and Family Programs interest session: Finding your Home: Housing Options for Next Year and Beyond
A Parent and Family Programs panel presented by CSU’s OffCampus Life and Housing & Dining Services will educate parents of current CSU students on the process of securing future housing. The panel will be from 9-10 a.m. Oct. 14 in room 308 of the Lory Student Center. PFP interest session: Experience an Education Abroad — 2022
During this panel, students and staff from CSU’s Education Abroad office will present to CSU students and parents regarding study abroad programs offered by CSU. The students and staff will discuss resources for financial aid and other opportunities for students looking to travel and study abroad. The panel will be from 10-11 a.m. Oct. 14 in room 304 of the LSC. PFP interest session: Rams on Wheels
A brand new event this year, OffCampus Life’s Rams on Wheels aims to provide students, parents and families with an opportunity to explore off-campus housing options and familiarize themselves with the Fort Collins community via community bus tours from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Oct. 14. The hop-on, hop-off tours begin at the LSC Transit Center and Moby Arena. 50 Year Club Luncheon
Everyone is invited to the 88th anniversary celebration of the 50 Year Club of CSU alumni from noon to 3 p.m. Oct. 14. The 1972 graduating class will be inducted into the club, and 50 Year Club Award recipients will be recognized. The event will take place in the Hilton Fort Collins ballrooms. PFP interest session: Get (Re)Engaged! Opportunities for Campus Involvement
Student Leadership, Involvement and Community Engagement will be holding an informational session from 1-2 p.m. Oct. 14 regarding opportunities for CSU students to engage in university programs and get involved on campus. The session will be in room 306 of the LSC. Rams Against Hunger Pantry — Open House
CSU community members are encouraged to join Rams Against Hunger, which works to address food insecurity at CSU and provides programs and services to students and staff in need, on an open-house tour of the Rams Against Hunger Food Pantry from 1-3 p.m. Oct. 14. The food pantry is in room 115 of the General Services Building, and the entrance to the room is exterior, next to the building’s main doors on the east side. PFP interest session: Getting Your Student ‘Ram Ready’ for Their Career
CSU families are invited to a panel and informational session concerning the career resources available through the CSU Career Center. Students and staff from the CSU Career Center will provide tips and information on resources available to help students prepare for life after graduation. The meeting will be from 2-2:45 p.m. Oct. 14 in room 304 of the LSC. Festival on The Oval
This year’s edition of the Festival on The Oval will feature food trucks, activities, live music and a beer garden from 3-6 p.m. Oct. 14. The event will also allow the public to engage with local businesses and vendors on The Oval. LaSasso Award Reception
Recipients of the Larry LaSasso Spirit Award, which recognizes individuals who demonstrate outstanding commitment and support for CSU athletics, will be honored from 4-5 p.m. Oct. 14 in the Iris & Michael Smith Alumni Center. CSU Alumni Association Member BBQ
An exclusive BBQ for CSU Alumni Association members and their guests will be held west of The Lagoon on CSU’s campus from 5:308 p.m. Oct. 14. A mini beer garden will be present, but the BBQ meal option is now sold out of meals. Friday Night Lights
A staple of Homecoming & Family Weekend, Friday Night Lights will feature traditions of the bonfire, pep rally, fireworks and the lighting of the A from 6-8:30 p.m. Oct. 14. All members of the public are invited to attend the event on the LSC West Lawn. ASCSU Alumni Reunion
Current and former members of the Associated Students of Colorado State University are invited to attend a reunion from 6-9 p.m. Oct. 14 featuring appetizers and recognition of the Denke Service Award recipient. The event will be in Ballroom D of the LSC. Black Excellence Alumni Dinner
The Black Excellence Alumni Dinner is a reunion, dinner and fundraising effort for the Black/ African American Cultural Center. It’s hosted by the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. Omicron Tau Alumni Association and supported by B/AACC, the CSU Alumni Association and the Office of Development. Tickets are $75 per plate, and semiformal attire is expected. The event will be from 6-9 p.m. Oct. 14 in The Lincoln Center’s Canyon West Ballroom. Alumni Marching Band Weekend
Alumni of the CSU Marching Band will have the all-day opportunity Oct. 15 during the CSU versus Utah State University football game at Canvas Stadium to march, play in the stands, perform on the field with the CSU Marching Band and enjoy tailgating efforts. Participants and alumni guests must register beforehand. Homecoming Bookstore Savings Event
Alumni Association members and Canvas Rams+ credit card holders will get 15% off all CSU Bookstore purchases all day Oct. 15 in the LSC Bookstore and the outdoor pop-up store, and 5% of each purchase will be allocated to the Alumni Association. Homecoming 5K Race
On Oct. 15, this year’s running of the Homecoming 5K, which is open to the public, will start at 8 a.m. on The Oval and run throughout campus. Morning Gathering with Alumni
A networking event with breakfast appetizers, which will be hosted by the B/AACC and the CSU Alumni Association, will be from 10 a.m. to noon Oct. 15 in seminar rooms 1 & 2 of the Iris & Michael Smith Alumni Center. Attendees are encouraged to wear Rams or Green and Gold gear. Engineering Our Sustainable Future
Hosted by the Walter Scott Jr. College of Engineering, the Engineering Our Sustainable Future tailgate will allow visitors to engage with exhibits about and the college’s work regarding sustainable energy systems, 3D printing, algae, environmental stewardship and more. The tailgate will be from 1-4 p.m. Oct. 15 on the lawn west of The Lagoon. Coors Light Ram Walk Tailgate
Partnering with Brothers BBQ to provide pre-purchased meals, the Coors Light Ram Walk Tailgate from 1-4:30 p.m. Oct. 15 will include the presence of CSU groups such as the B/AACC, Alumni Association, colleges of Business and Health and Human Sciences and Parent and Family Programs. Live music, TVs and food and drink for purchase will be available to participants. Smith Alumni Center Open to All
Live music, a cash bar and photo opportunities with CAM the Ram will be available inside the Iris & Michael Smith Alumni Center from 1-4:30 p.m. Oct. 15. The historic Old Main Bell will be rung at 4:15 p.m. CSU vs. Utah State
The Rams football team will take on the Utah State Aggies for the third home game of the season at 5 p.m. Oct. 15 in Canvas Stadium.
Reach Sam Hutton at news@ collegian.com.
EDUCATION
CIRA, NOAA bring atmospheric science, research to CSU
By Allie Seibel
@allie_seibel_
The Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere and its partner, the Regional and Mesoscale Meteorology Branch, work with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to conduct atmospheric research on storms to better prepare residents across the country for severe weather situations.
With Hurricane Ian’s recent landfall in Cuba, Florida and South Carolina, the CIRA team’s satellite imagery was picked up and used alongside coverage in news sources including The New York Times, BBC News, ABC News and CNN.
“It was a very concerning storm for us to track in terms of the differences with Ian versus other storms in the past,” said Steven Miller, director of CIRA and a professor of atmospheric science at Colorado State University.
“Only recently have we had this newer generation of geostationary satellites, which are capable of providing very high space and time resolution imagery,” Miller said. “We were able to track the storm in ways that could not be done in years past; we’re really able to drill down into the structure of the storm, see details of the inner eye and the dynamics going on within that area and really supporting NOAA in terms of understanding what that storm would be doing next.”
Geostationary satellites are satellites that are launched into Earth’s atmosphere and remain at a fixed point in orbit while capturing images of Earth. The satellites move in time with the planet, providing continuous high-definition imagery of the Earth.
CIRA currently has three geostationary satellites in orbit through their Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite — R Series project. The first GOES-R satellite, GOES16, launched in November 2016 and was followed by GOES-17 in March 2018 and GOES-18 in March of this year. According to the GOES — R website, the GOES-R series of satellites will be completed with a launch of another satellite in 2024.
“There’s so many cool satellites that we’re trying to get up into space,” said Matt Rogers, CIRA research associate and education and outreach coordinator.
“We work very closely with NOAA and NASA in terms of instrument development,” Rogers said. “With geostationary satellites, in addition to weather, we can learn all kinds of interesting information from seeing the Earth at night, like power outages. We can see that from space, and we can get a sense of how big the outages are and how much resources we might need to allocate from the federal government, for example.”
NOAA and CIRA formed their partnership in 1980: a four-decade ongoing partnership in atmospheric research headquartered at the Colorado State University Foothills Campus.
“We’ve worked through several generations of meteorological satellites,” Miller said. “It’s all for helping society make the most out of investments in the space and taking advantage of these really neat sensors that are flying up there in orbit that can take pictures of the weather and the weather in motion and tell us all different kinds of things about what’s going on right now.”
CIRA’s connection to CSU combines the atmospheric science department with CIRA and RAMMB’s research and resources to expand access to academic professionals at CSU as well as technology and resources within CIRA.
“We’re positioned at Colorado State University so that we can couple with the atmospheric science department principally — but also with other colleges and departments within the university — to tap into academia and the basic foundational knowledge that’s generated in this national highly ranked university and to take that information and turn it into actionable tools and things of practical use for society,” Miller said.
CIRA’s main goal with severe weather imagery is to better guide forecasts and public safety warnings.
“I think sometimes it’s hard to understand forecasts, especially when you have a landfalling hurricane that’s hitting a major populated area,” Rogers said. “Storms like Ian give us a real opportunity to figure out exactly how to get the forecasting and evacuation messaging across better. If satellite imagery helps with that, then we want to be present any way we can.”
In addition to hurricanes, RAMMB’s geostationary satellites primarily monitor air quality, blizzards, fires, volcanoes and dust storms, according to CIRA’s satellite library.
“We’re working to help NOAA anticipate, better predict and better give guidance to forecasters, which are ultimately advising you and I about when to take shelter, when to evacuate and what to look out for in the near future,” Miller said.
Going forward, Miller hopes CIRA will continue to stay on the cutting edge of satellite research to better inform the public of severe weather emergencies.
“We’re working to continuously get better and better prepared for these kinds of events in the future,” Miller said. “With a changing climate, perhaps we might anticipate some storms happening differently than they have in the past in terms of where they form, how intense they become, how many storms we might see and where they go. As we enter this new paradigm, we’re going to really be more and more reliant on the observations, the models and the forecasts of these storms so we can give the public the best possible guidance.”
Reach Allie Seibel at news@ collegian.com.
STEVEN MILLER
DIRECTOR OF THE COOPERATIVE INSTITUTE FOR RESEARCH IN THE ATMOSPHERE
