Clifford Mass is a renowned meteorologist who has had a significant impact on the field of atmospheric sciences. He has had a long and illustrious career, during which he has worked with some of the most influential figures in the field, including Carl Sagan, Steve Schneider, and Dick Reed. Mass began his career at Cornell, where he worked with Carl Sagan on a numerical model of the Martian atmosphere. This work resulted in his first publication, which was published in the Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences. He later worked with Steve Schneider at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) as part of a summer internship in scientific computing. During this time, he worked on climate modeling and published two papers with Schneider. Mass also worked closely with Dick Reed, a professor at the University of Washington and one of the great synoptic meteorologists of the twentieth century. Mass learned a lot about weather, weather forecasting, and research from Reed, and their collaboration was both informal and interactive. Mass has been a member of the American Meteorological Society (AMS) for many years and has seen the organization evolve over time. He believes that the AMS has the potential to tap into the vast population of weather enthusiasts and that localizing the organization could be beneficial.

Scope and Content Note
This interview with Clifford Mass provides a detailed account of his career and his thoughts on the future of the American Meteorological Society (AMS). Mass discusses his early career, including his work with Carl Sagan at Cornell on a numerical model of the Martian atmosphere, his summer internship at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) where he worked with Steve Schneider on climate modeling, and his collaboration with Dick Reed at the University of Washington. Mass also shares his thoughts on the AMS, including its evolution over the years and its potential for growth. He suggests that the AMS could benefit from localizing and tapping into the vast population of weather enthusiasts. He also discusses the changes he has observed in the AMS meetings over the years, noting a decrease in size and a shift in focus to specialty meetings. The interview concludes with a brief discussion about Mass's favorite memories and his refusal to name a favorite graduate student.