Geospatial Jobs and Career Center

JohnW.

• Experience Level: 5 Years
• Location: Huntsville, AL USA
• Last Updated: December 3, 2012

Experience

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Research Associate II
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University of Alabama in Huntsville, Earth System Science Center - Huntsville, AL
May 2008 to Present
——- Highlights:——-
-Overall job involves identifying problems and applying knowledge and experience toward researching
and solving them in the most efficient method possible. Ability to view projects from all angles is
imperative!
-Day-to-day tasks involve processing, visualization, and analysis of large datasets, particularly satellite
data. This requires a good deal of computer programming/coding and expertise in image processing.
Reading, writing, and reviewing scientific documents also accounts for a large part of the work performed.
-Team collaboration with multiple research groups from UAHuntsville, NOAA National Weather Service
(NWS), NASA SPoRT, National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT)-Lincoln Labs, the National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL), the Storm Prediction
Center (SPC), and other universities
-Invented a satellite-based “object-tracking” algorithm that was patented by the University of Alabama in Huntsville
-Built the 2nd version of an operational satellite Convective Initiation (CI) forecasting product called
SATCAST, involving processing and flow of data for real-time operations for the National Weather
Service
——- Programming/Computer experience:——-
-IDL, FORTRAN, McIDAS, Bash Scripting, Perl, Linux, NOAH-LSM mod
——- Publications:——-
-Walker, J.R., J.R.Mecikalski, K.R.Knupp, and W.M.MacKenzie Jr. (2009), Development of a Land
Surface Heating Index–Based Method to Locate Regions of Potential Mesoscale Circulation Formation,
J.Geophys.Res., 114, D16112, doi:10.1029/2009JD011853.
-Walker, J.R., W.M. MacKenzie, Jr., J.R. Mecikalski, and C.P. Jewett, (2012), An Enhanced
Geostationary Satellite-based Convective Initiation Algorithm for 0-2 Hour Nowcasting with Object
Tracking. J.Appl.Meter.Climatol., In Press.
——- Conferences with research presentations:——-
—EUMETSAT—
2008: Darmstadt, Germany
2009: Bath, England
2011: Oslo, Norway
—American Meteorological Society (AMS) Annual Conference—
2009: Phoenix, AZ
2012: New Orleans, LA
—AMS Satellite Conference—
2010: Annapolis, MD
—GOES-R Annual Review—
2011: Ft. Collins, CO

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Adjunct Instructor of Physical Science
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Northeast Alabama Community College - Section, AL
January 2011 to Present
——- Highlights:——-
-Natural Sciences Division of Northeast Alabama Community College
-Involves preparation of curriculum for teaching general concepts and applications of mathematics
related to the physical sciences at the undergraduate college level.

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Graduate Research Assistant
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University of Alabama in Huntsville, Dept. of Atmospheric Science - Huntsville, AL
August 2006 to May 2008
——- Topic:——-
“Development of a new method for forecasting convective storms”
——- Publications:——-
- Walker, J.R. 2008: New Product to Help with the Prediction of Convective Initiation in the 1-6 Hour
Time-frame. M.S. thesis, Dept. of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alabama at Huntsville, 99 pp.
——- Conferences with research presentations:——-
—AMS Annual Conference—
2008: New Orleans, LA
—Southeast Coastal and Atmospheric Processes Symposium (SeCAPS)—
2008: Mobile, AL

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Research Assistant
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University of South Alabama - Mobile, AL
May 2005 to July 2006
——- Topic:——-
“Effects of friction on the wind field of a modeled land-falling hurricane”
——- Programming/Computer experience required:——-
-UNIX and Microsoft Office suite
——- Conferences with research presentations:——-
—AMS Conference on Hurricanes and Tropical Meteorology—
2006: Monterey, CA
——- Publications:——-
-Peer-review style paper and poster created on this topic for the University of South Alabama University
Committee on Undergraduate Research (UCUR), 2005

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Education
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M.S. Atmospheric Science—(GPA: 3.90)
University of Alabama in Huntsville - Huntsville, AL
2006 to 2008
B.S. Meteorology—(GPA: 3.95)
University of South Alabama - Mobile, AL
2004 to 2006
B.S. Geosciences/ Broadcast Meteorology—(GPA: 3.96)
Mississippi State University - Starkville, MS
2000 to 2004

General Information

I have a rich background with many years in research, involving processing and analysis of large
data sets. My specific research background is in atmospheric science (meteorology), however, the
education and skills I have acquired in this field are applicable in many other scientific/research fields.

I also have a background in communications and in operational forecasting. In my previous lines of work, oral and written communication skills (including publications) have been very important, and I have acquired and honed these skills very well.

I thrive in a work environment where I can take wnership of a project or a series of projects,  either as an individual or as part of a team, and I work well without being “micro-managed”. I take great pride in my work, and I have a work ethic and a drive for perfection that allows me to learn quickly and produce quality results. I enjoy problem solving and the freedom of creativity to identify and approach/view problems from multiple angles so that I can apply my knowledge and experience toward deriving the best possible solution and course of action for working on and completing a project.

Contact Information

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