Do you think clouds are cool? Have a penchant for prognostication? Well, Bob Marshall ’88, mechanical engineering, is your man.

A story in the Washington Post says Marshall — owner of Earth Networks — “prays for crazy weather.”

“We buzz off this stuff,” Marshall says, staring at his computer monitor as it follows a path of lightning across Massachusetts.

His company, Earth Networks, grosses $50 million from its 10,000 suitcase-size weather stations spanning the globe.

The information pours in to the privately held company’s Germantown headquarters, home to Marshall and a posse of scientists and meteorologists.

Local emergency crews subscribe so they can jump on flash floods or lay down sand before the snow hits. Sports leagues need to know whether that thunderstorm heading their way is going to hit the stadium.

Bob was honored by the UMBC Alumni Association during its 2007 Outstanding Alumni Awards.

Read the full Washington Post story here.

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