Our team of meteorologists are degreed and certified with decades of experience in forecasting, broadcasting, and consulting. We are dedicated to providing accurate, no-hype weather information to keep you safe and informed. Learn more about our team of weather experts!
Paul Douglas
Paul Douglas is a Penn State University–trained meteorologist with 47 years of experience in television, radio, and weather innovation. A trusted and familiar voice across Minnesota, Paul once coined the phrase, “Minnesota is the Super Bowl of Weather,” during his early years at KARE-11 in the 1980s. Decades later, it still rings true.
Throughout his career, Paul has covered some of the region’s most historic weather events, including the July 18, 1986 tornado outbreak captured live from a station helicopter, the 1987 Twin Cities flash flood, the record-setting Halloween Blizzard of 1991, and historic flooding along the Red River in 1997 and Duluth in 2012. From epic droughts to choking wildfire smoke, he has helped Minnesotans prepare for — and make sense of — nature at its most extreme.
A serial entrepreneur, Paul has founded or co-founded seven companies, including Praedictix, AerisWeather, and Climatrends. Earlier ventures include EarthWatch Communications, whose 3D weather graphics were featured in the films Jurassic Park and Twister, and Digital Cyclone, the first company to launch a weather app on a mobile phone, later acquired by Garmin.
Susie Martin
Susie’s passion for science began early, sparked by a childhood fascination with dinosaurs and Earth science. That curiosity evolved into a calling, leading her to pursue meteorology at the University of Miami, where she graduated cum laude in 2005 with a Bachelor of Science in Meteorology and Mathematics.
Driven by a desire to make complex atmospheric science clear and accessible, Susie launched her career in broadcast meteorology. She began forecasting on-air in the Quad Cities, Iowa, before relocating to Minnesota in 2008. Today, she is proud to serve as part of the WeatherLoon team, continuing her mission to communicate impactful, trustworthy weather information with clarity and purpose. Susie is board certified in both broadcast and consulting meteorology by the American Meteorological Society with a specialized expertise in forensic weather analysis and weather consulting.
Raised in Costa Rica, Susie is fluent in English and Spanish. Outside of work, she enjoys traveling, cycling, camping in Minnesota’s state parks, and photography. Most of all, she treasures time with her husband, two sons, and their dog. You will often find her bundled up in a hockey rink or cheering on the sidelines of a soccer or baseball field, embracing Minnesota’s seasons in every sense.
Todd Nelson
Todd’s passion for weather was born while growing up in Minnesota. From chasing severe thunderstorms and tornadoes as a kid to witnessing historic winter events like the Halloween Blizzard of 1991, Todd’s early experiences fueled a lifelong fascination with the atmosphere.
After graduating with a degree in Meteorology from St. Cloud State, Todd headed north to Duluth, where he became Chief Meteorologist at Fox 21 News, covering severe storms and heavy lake-effect snow events on Lake Superior. Todd has more than two decades of experience in broadcast and consulting meteorology and specializes in severe weather coverage during high-impact weather events. Today, he brings that same passion and expertise to clients nationwide, delivering trusted forecasts and compelling weather storytelling that empower confident decision-making in every season.
Joe Hansel
Minnesota born and raised. Joe has 15+ years of experience as a broadcast meteorologist with also time spent in Wyoming and Indiana. Joe is a Certified Broadcast Meteorologist from the American Meteorological Society, a graduate from the University of North Dakota and also a weather intern for KSTP-TV Channel 5.
Joe has a passion for weather communicating and is also an election poll worker. While on free time, Joe enjoys time outdoors in Minnesota, friends, and with family. Lots of family time since moving back. If possible, relaxing by a lake, listening to a loon, while drinking a cup of coffee.
Alyssa Triplett
Alyssa is a Minnesota native who fell in love with all four seasons but especially loves the warm summer days out on the lakes. She took her love of weather, math and science to the University of North Dakota, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Atmospheric Science. Alyssa interned with KARE 11 before heading out to her first job in Little Rock, Arkansas. Alyssa was pulled back to the Midwest where she spent 3 years as the morning Meteorologist for WXOW in La Crosse, WI. During her time in La Crosse, she became a Certified Broadcast Meteorologist (CBM) through the American Meteorological Society and was awarded Best Weathercast in 2021 from the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association.
Away from the green screen, Alyssa is an outdoor enthusiast, especially after meeting her husband, Luke. Together they love to find time to go fishing from the summer through the winter months; ice fishing, especially dark house spearing, has become a favorite. Finding time to hike, hunt, camp and boat is also necessary and often her German Shepherd named Phoebe is along for the ride. In the spare time between being outdoors, Alyssa loves to grab a good cup of coffee, read, watch the Vikings and Minnesota Wild, and spend as much time as possible with family and friends.
Brandon Weatherz
Brandon's calling to weather began with the family name. He and his wife changed the 's' to a 'z' to carry on a piece of her maiden name, so 'Weatherz' truly is his real name.
The weather themes continued as Brandon grew up near St. Cloud and attended a high school whose mascot was Storm. Brandon earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Meteorology from St. Cloud State University in 2018, then spent 6 years in Duluth with WDIO. In that time, his weather education segment earned two Upper Midwest Emmy Awards, and he became a Certified Broadcast Meteorologist (CBM) through the American Meteorological Society. Brandon has also freelanced for KSTP and Minnesota Public Radio.
Outside of weather, Brandon has a passion for theater. He's always happy to visit local productions and catch professional shows touring through the Twin Cities.
Daniel Kayser
Daniel (D.J.) Kayser grew up knowing from the age of four that he was going to be a meteorologist. Born and raised in St. Cloud (go Apollo Eagles!), he graduated with his Bachelor of Science degree in Meteorology in 2012 from St. Cloud State University. Daniel draws on over fifteen years of consulting and broadcast meteorology experience, with a love for data and surfacing unique weather statistics. He also has a hand in the graphics you’ll see every day on air here at WeatherLoon.
When not at work, he and his spouse, Bex, enjoy spending free time out in the great outdoors hiking, camping, and kayaking - sometimes having to dodge several of Minnesota’s weather seasons in a single five-day vacation. Fun fact: they have visited all the Minnesota State Parks - twice! They also have two cats, Tazi and Agate, who serve as his at-home 'interns'.
Cassie Kleven
Cassie Kleven is a meteorologist with deep Minnesota roots and a lifelong passion for the ever-changing weather of the Upper Midwest. More than 25 years ago, she met Paul Douglas, whose dedication and passion for meteorology helped inspire her own interest in the field, making the opportunity to now work alongside him a true full-circle moment in her career.
Cassie graduated from Anoka High School before continuing her education at St. Cloud State University, where she studied meteorology. While at St. Cloud State, Cassie served as Chief Meteorologist for UTVS, gaining valuable on-air forecasting experience and covering everything from severe weather outbreaks to Minnesota’s notorious winter storms. She later interned with the weather team at KARE 11, learning from experienced meteorologists and gaining firsthand insight into forecasting for Minnesota’s unique climate.
Cassie began her professional broadcasting career as the Morning Meteorologist at TV6 in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. There, she forecasted lake-effect snow, severe storms, and the dynamic weather patterns influenced by Lake Superior. These experiences further strengthened her forecasting skills in northern climates.
When she’s not tracking storms or preparing forecasts, she enjoys spending time on one of Minnesota’s many lakes with her husband and their two kids. They enjoy spending time on the pontoon soaking up the sunshine, and appreciating the natural beauty that makes Minnesota home.
Gretchen Mishek
Born and raised in Minnesota, I’m proud that my family has been here for ages. My kids were the seventh generation to call Washington County home before we moved to South Carolina. Growing up surrounded by Minnesota’s ever-changing seasons sparked my early fascination with weather and laid the foundation for a career in meteorology.
I earned a B.S. in Meteorology from the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida, with minors in mathematics and physics. During my junior year, I studied physics abroad at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, broadening both my academic and cultural perspectives. After graduation, I worked for Weather Central in Madison, Wisconsin as a software trainer, implementing weather graphics systems and training broadcast meteorologists at television stations across the United States and internationally. In 2008, I joined the Praedictix team, where I spent 15 years working as a broadcast meteorologist.
Today, my family and I call Greenville, South Carolina home. We’ve happily traded blizzards for milder winters, though we do enjoy gently sharing our “northern expertise” when rare Southern snowflakes start to fall. I continue contributing to Praedictix through forecasting and writing, combining decades of experience with a lifelong passion for weather.