David Arnold, a geography professor and director of the university's Storm Chase Team, will lead 16 students on a 31-day, 14,000-mile journey. The group leaves Ball State May 6 and is scheduled to return June 6.

The students are enrolled in Field Observation of Severe Local Storms, a geology course for seniors and graduate students. The field trip to the Great Plains allows students to understand how tornadoes are created.

Last year, Arnold's group drove an average of 600 miles daily and were able to get within a few city blocks of a 300-yard wide twister about 12 miles south of Pratt, Kan.

"The trip provides students with a good deal of experience forecasting thunderstorms, and it allows them to make associations between specific atmospheric parameters and the character of the storms that result," Arnold said. "A side benefit is that they are forced to work as a 'team' in order to be successful, which usually helps them develop personal skills that they may not have possessed prior to the trip. In the past I have seen students completely transformed by the experience."

Arnold may be reached at his office at (765) 285-1768 or home at (765) 289-2591. To contact Arnold during the trip, call him at (765) 730-2152 or (765) 748-6125.