Tornado chasers perform risky, exciting work but for very meager salaries.
Tornado chasers, or storm chasers, run toward tornadoes and other severe weather events while others run for cover. These adventurous and curious professionals track and monitor storms as they move through an area, hoping to capture photographs, videos and valuable meteorological data that will help experts and laypeople understand severe weather more completely. While storm chasing is an exciting, dynamic job with valuable objectives, it is unfortunately not the most lucrative line of work.
Average Salary
Storm chasers earn extremely low salaries. According to Simply Hired, the annual salary for storm chasers is $18,000, as of August 2011. This amounts to only $1,500 per month, which is only slightly more than the monthly income of a full-time, minimum wage worker. Because of these particularly low earnings, professional storm chasers typically specialize in other primary careers related to storm chasing, such as meteorology, television film, editing and production and broadcast reporting. Thus, most storm chasers relegate the activity to the role of personal hobby, rather than relying on storm chasing as their primary source of income.
Sales & Consultation
While most workers receive regular paychecks, the income of storm chasers takes on a vastly different form. Instead of receiving paid salaries, storm chasers earn money by selling their video footage, photos and meteorological data to the highest bidder -- typically research companies, government entities or media conglomerates. A storm chaser's income depends not only on his ability to produce useful information and media about the storm, but also by his ability to network and negotiate with potential buyers. Some storm chasers also receive consultation fees from film and television producers who seek credible information about realistically portray storm chasing on-screen.
Opportunities for Work
One significant factor that contributes to the low average salary for storm chasers is the simple fact that their opportunities for work are severely limited by the frequency of severe weather events. If the weather remains tame for extended periods of time, this can translate to a complete lack of work for storm chasers. That said, the busiest time of the year for storm chasers is spring, when tornadoes and other storms are most active. Furthermore, many storm chasers are limited by their geographical locale. Many storm chasers choose to live in Tornado Alley, the Midwestern region between the Appalachian and Rocky Mountain chains famous for its violent weather.
Considerations
An important consideration for anyone embarking on a career as a storm chaser is that much of the money earned on the job must be invested in equipment, as well as in travel and legal costs. Furthermore, because of the inherently dangerous nature of the work, costs associated with medical coverage are likely to increase, as insurance companies deem storm chasers high-risk clients. Unfortunately, numerous storm chasers claim to merely break even while pursuing storm chasing, as the meager pay and significant external costs cancel each other out.
Tags: storm chasers, storm chasing, severe weather, chasers earn, meteorological data