Inside CBS Colorado’s Cutting-Edge Virtual Weather Studio – Transforming Forecasts Forever - Mixed Reality System

At a Glance

CBS Colorado’s Virtual Weather Studio uses augmented reality to create immersive 3D visualizations of weather patterns.
The 360-degree cyclorama green screen environment allows meteorologists to interact with real-time weather data.
Engineers, graphic artists, and meteorologists collaborated for over two years to develop the system.
The technology provides hyperlocal forecasts and visualizations of severe weather impacts for specific neighborhoods.
The studio integrates with CBS Colorado’s First Alert Weather Trackers for enhanced live storm coverage.

In a groundbreaking leap for weather forecasting, CBS Colorado has revealed its Virtual Weather Studio, where storms literally swirl around meteorologists as they explain tomorrow’s forecast. The futuristic setup combines augmented and virtual reality to create 3D weather visualizations that bring Colorado’s notoriously fickle microclimates to life. It’s like watching your local meteorologist step inside a video game, except the lightning and snow are based on real-time data!

The studio features a massive cyclorama green screen that curves 360 degrees around presenters, allowing them to walk through virtual rainstorms or point out approaching cold fronts with millimeter-precise tracking. Gone are the days when a meteorologist simply stood in front of a flat map—now they’re practically swimming through Gulf of Alaska storm systems as they explain how tomorrow’s commute might be affected. Similar to how dynamic portals transform museum experiences, this technology revolutionizes how viewers interact with weather information.

Step into tomorrow’s weather as meteorologists navigate storms with pinpoint precision inside their immersive virtual environment.

Behind this weather wizardry stands a diverse team that’s been collaborating for over two years. Engineers, graphic artists, and meteorologists worked together for months, using the same software that builds video game worlds to create realistic environmental models. The team’s dedication is evident in how they break down tasks into manageable components to maintain their intensive development schedule. The project benefited from the leadership and vision of Eric Buckland, Engineering Manager, who dedicated more than two years to bringing this innovation to life. Talk about a dream job—designing virtual tornadoes and blizzards all day!

The studio represents a first-of-its-kind innovation for Colorado television, offering hyperlocal forecasts down to the neighborhood level. When severe weather strikes, viewers can actually see how flooding might impact specific areas or how a tornado’s path might develop—information that could literally save lives.

Weekly updates keep the system cutting-edge, with developers constantly enhancing the visualization capabilities. The technology also integrates seamlessly with CBS Colorado’s First Alert Weather Trackers for those dramatic live storm chase moments we all secretly love watching from our couches.

Perhaps most impressive is the control room choreography, where directors coordinate complex graphic presentations and camera movements in real-time. It’s like conducting a weather orchestra, transforming raw data into a visual symphony that makes understanding Colorado’s rapid weather changes easier than ever before.