Stormy weather struck the Mesa Lab during the week of 9 July, but it wasn't the type to cause any damage. A group of 22 young "Weather Wizards" from CU's Science Discovery program created the look of lightning by vigorously rubbing synthetic cloth against Styrofoam plates and capturing the resulting sparks with hand-held neon tubes. The elementary and middle school students, who were taking weeklong classes in weather, also used household items to produce vortices and convection currents, and they proved that cold air contracts by placing an inflated balloon into a refrigerator. Steven Vanek, a teacher at Gold Hill Elementary School who put together the projects, says, "I've always had a real love for meteorology." For the record, lightning struck twice for at least one young wizard. "I got a couple of bolts," reported Greg Fonda (inset), who's entering Burbank Middle School this fall. Fonda, an aspiring meteorologist, names lightning as his favorite weather phenomenon. "It's so amazing," he says, "and it's so bright." (Photos by Carlye Calvin.)