MEET TEAM OTUS
The OTUS Project is a nonprofit research mission led by Nelson Tucker, Louis Tucker, Tanner Beard, and Erik Fox. Founded by students in meteorology and engineering, OTUS is pioneering the use of cutting-edge UAV technology, software, and sensor engineering to investigate tornadoes in ways never before possible.
Our goal is to protect life and property by improving our understanding of wind forces for structural resilience and collecting thermodynamic data to enhance computer models and hazard prediction. Through advanced drone deployments, strategic partnerships, and real-time fieldwork, OTUS is pushing storm science forward—documenting every step to inspire, educate, and build the support needed to continue this mission.
Nelson Tucker
President
Hailing from northern Virginia, Nelson has had a fascination with wind-based phenomena since young childhood. This interest only grew with time, and he has spent much of his life immersing himself in the science and history of volatile weather. Since 2020, Nelson has been a primary researcher/writer at the Tornado Talk LLC, a website devoted to documenting tornado history. In 2024, he was part of the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Currently, Nelson is in his second-to-last year as a student at Millersville University. He is majoring in Meteorology, with minors in Journalism and Emergency Management. After graduating, Nelson hopes to continue his studies and pursue a PhD. In his spare time, he enjoys weather photography and timelapsing, researching, mapping, and damage analysis.
Louis Tucker
Drone Builder and Ops Coordinator
Louis has flown drones his whole life and picked up drone racing in 2019. Thousands of flight hours later, he became the 2023 National Collegiate Drone Racing Champion and led his School to a 1st place finish in 2024. Older brother to Nelson, Louis learned about the challenges that researchers faced when gathering data near/inside a tornado, and figured that the OTUS concept was possible with the right engineering expertise to solve such issues. After pulling in Tanner, a close friend through drone racing, OTUS was born and in less than 3 months he flew the first drone inside a tornado in May 2024.
Tanner Beard
Lead Engineer
Tanner is a aerospace engineer based in Brownsville, TX with over 8 years experience building, flying and racing quads and fixed wing aircraft. He is a sponsored drone racing pilot, placing 2nd at the 2023 collegiate drone racing racing nationals. Tanner has transformed his house into a workshop with a mill, lathe, welder and 3d printers. Outside of drones, Tanner enjoys longboard dancing, surfing and storm chasing!
Erik Fox
Chasing Expert
Erik has been chasing since 1995 and has been a field correspondent since 2016 for Weather Nation. Before being a correspondent, he was a DOD forecaster from 2010-2015. Erik started the National Storm Chaser Summit (NSCS) in 2019 with James Menzies. When not chasing tornadoes and severe weather, Erik is a police officer and has been with the force since 2010.