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Committee and Staff Biographical Information

COMMITTEE

CHRISTIAN D. KUMMEROW (Co-Chair) is a professor of atmospheric science at Colorado State University and also served as the director of the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere. Dr. Kummerow’s research interests include remote sensing and the global water cycle and its uncertainties, including how uncertainties relate to physical aspects of the atmosphere and thus the fundamental processes underlying precipitation and the water cycle. Prior to joining Colorado State University, Dr. Kummerow worked at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, serving as the project scientist for the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission and as a study scientist for the Global Precipitation Mission (GPM). Dr. Kummerow is currently on the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer Science Team and also serves as the team lead for GPM’s Passive Microwave Algorithm Team. He also currently co-chairs the International Precipitation Working Group, has been the chair and a member of the GEWEX Data and Assessments Panel, and is a member of the NASA Earth Science Subcommittee. Dr. Kummerow was awarded the NASA Goddard Exceptional Achievement Award and Maryland’s Distinguished Young Scientist Award. He earned a PhD in atmospheric physics from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. Dr. Kummerow served on the Global Hydrological Cycles and Water Resources panel for the most recent decadal survey for Earth science and applications from space and co-chaired the Committee on the Review of Lessons-Learned in the Implementation of NASA’s Earth Venture Class.

ANNA M. MICHALAK (Co-Chair) is the founding director of the Climate and Resilience Hub at the Carnegie Institution for Science and a professor (by courtesy) in the Department of Earth System Science and the Department of Biology at Stanford University. Dr. Michalak’s research focuses on approaches for characterizing both natural and human emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs) at urban to global scales—scales directly relevant to informing climate science and policy—and on assessing climate change impacts on freshwater and coastal water quality, with a particular focus on eutrophication and harmful algal blooms. Dr. Michalak is the lead author of the U.S. Carbon Cycle Science Plan, a former editor of the journal Water Resources Research, and previous chair of the scientific advisory board for the European Integrated

Carbon Observation System. She is the recipient of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (nominated by NASA), the National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER award, and the American Geophysical Union’s (AGU’s) Simpson Medal. She is a Leopold Environmental Leadership Fellow and a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union. Dr. Michalak earned a PhD in civil and environmental engineering from Stanford University.

STACEY W. BOLAND is a principal systems engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Dr. Boland currently serves as the project system engineer for the Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols, a NASA Earth Venture Instrument investigation. She has expertise in systems engineering, Earth mission concept development, mission architecture, and flight project implementation. Previously, Dr. Boland served as the project systems engineer for the ISS-RapidScat instrument and as observatory system engineer for the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2. She was also a member of the Project Systems Engineering team for the Orbiting Carbon Observatory. Dr. Boland has been awarded NASA’s Exceptional Achievement Medal and NASA’s Outstanding Public Leadership Medal. She earned a PhD in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Dr. Boland served on the steering committee of the most recent decadal survey for Earth science and applications from space.

FRANCISCO P. CHAVEZ is a senior scientist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI). Dr. Chavez is interested in how climate variability and change regulate ocean ecosystems on local and basin scales. He is a founding member of MBARI, pioneering time series research and the development of new instruments and systems at the institute. Dr. Chavez has been involved in the development of the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System and is a past member of the NSF Geosciences Advisory Committee. He is currently part of the governing board of the Central and Northern California Coastal Ocean Observing System, the science advisory team for the California Ocean Protection Council, the advisory committee for Instituto del Mar del Peru, the scientific steering committee for the Global Ocean Oxygen Network, and the Ocean Biomolecular Observing Network. Dr. Chavez has been honored with a Doctor Honoris Causa from the Universidad Pedro Ruiz Gallo in Peru and the Ed Ricketts Memorial award from the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of the Sciences (AAAS) and the AGU. He earned a PhD in botany from Duke University. Dr. Chavez served on the Marine and Terrestrial Ecosystems and Natural Resource Management panel for the most recent decadal survey for Earth science and applications from space.

WILLIAM E. DIETRICH is a professor (retired) in the Graduate School at the University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Dietrich is also a founder and co-director of the National Center for Airborne Laser Mapping and a member of the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover team. His research focuses on geomorphic transport laws for soil production, weathering, and transport, and for river and debris flow incision into bedrock. Dr. Dietrich has been awarded the Robert E. Horton Medal and the G.K. Gilbert Award by the AGU, and the Arthur Holmes Medal from the European Geosciences Union (EGU). Dr. Dietrich is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the British Society for Geomorphology, the California Academy of Sciences, and the Geological Society of America; he is also a member of the EGU and the National Academy of Sciences. He earned a PhD in geology from the University of Washington. Dr. Dietrich served on the steering committee of the most recent decadal survey for Earth science and applications from space.

KATHLEEN (KASS) O’NEILL GREEN is the president of Kass Green and Associates. Ms. Green’s experience spans more than 30 years of managing and supervising geographic information system (GIS) and remote sensing professionals, as well as leadership in GIS and remote sensing research and policy. Her research

includes innovations in automated change detection and machine learning for object-oriented image classification. Ms. Green is the past chair of NASA’s Earth Science Applications Committee. She also co-founded and chaired the Department of the Interior’s (DOI’s) Landsat Advisory Group and has served on a variety of Federal Advisory Committees for NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and DOI. Ms. Green is a fellow and a past president of the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing.

DEANNA A. HENCE is an assistant professor of atmospheric sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Prior to joining the faculty of the University of Illinois, Dr. Hence was a NASA Postdoctoral Fellow at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. Dr. Hence is a co-principal investigator for the NSF Institute for Geospatial Understanding Through an Integrative Discovery Environment (I-GUIDE), which engages interdisciplinary geospatial research toward problems of resilience and sustainability. Her research program uses observations from field experiments combined with high-resolution numerical modeling to study the interactions of high-impact convective storm systems with their environments, and how the evolution of these storms influences their impacts on human systems. Deeply rooted in using remote sensing observations to examine cloud and precipitation processes, her research encompasses phenomena across the tropics and the midlatitude, with a focus on precipitation-related hazards and the spatial and temporal context in which hazardous weather events occur. Dr. Hence was recognized as a Kavli Frontiers of Science Fellow, and she currently serves as a chapter author for the Fifth National Climate Assessment. Dr. Hence earned a PhD in atmospheric sciences from the University of Washington.

DANIEL J. JACOB is the Vasco McCoy Family Professor of Atmospheric Chemistry and Environmental Engineering at Harvard University. Dr. Jacob is an expert in atmospheric chemistry whose research covers a wide range of topics from air quality to climate change and involves extensive use of satellite data. He led the development of the GEOS-Chem global 3D model of atmospheric composition, has served as mission scientist on eight NASA aircraft missions around the world, and is a member of several satellite Science Teams. Dr. Jacob’s professional honors include the Haagen-Smit Prize, the NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal, the AGU’s Macelwane Medal, and the Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering. He earned a PhD in environmental engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Dr. Jacob served on the steering committee of the most recent decadal survey for Earth science and applications from space.

DENNIS P. LETTENMAIER is a Distinguished Professor of Geography at the University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. Lettenmaier’s research interests include hydrological modeling and prediction, hydrologic remote sensing, hydrology–climate interactions, and hydrologic change. He previously served as a visiting scientist at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the program manager of NASA’s Land Surface Hydrology Program. Dr. Lettenmaier is a past president of the hydrology section of the AGU; a member of the National Academy of Engineering; and a fellow of the AGU, the American Meteorological Society (AMS), and AAAS. His professional honors include the AGU Robert E. Horton Medal and the AMS Charney Medal. Dr. Lettenmaier earned a PhD in civil engineering from the University of Washington.

LESLEY E. OTT is a research meteorologist in NASA’s Global Modeling and Assimilation Office at the Goddard Space Flight Center. Dr. Ott’s work focuses on using a combination of satellite data and numerical models to better understand the sources and sinks of GHGs and how the processes that control them may change over time. She also coordinates a group of university and government scientists that aims to inform how future satellite missions can improve understanding of carbon pollution and public policy. Dr. Ott serves on multiple NASA science teams, including the Carbon Monitoring System and Orbiting Carbon

Observatory. She was previously a NASA Postdoctoral Program Fellow and an assistant state climatologist for the state of Maryland. She earned a PhD in atmospheric science from the University of Maryland. Dr. Ott served on the Marine and Terrestrial Ecosystems and Natural Resource Management panel for the most recent decadal survey for Earth science and applications from space.

DAVID T. SANDWELL is a professor of geophysics in the Institute for Geophysics and Planetary Physics at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Dr. Sandwell’s research activities are focused on mapping large-scale topographic features beneath the ocean using data collected by sonars on research vessels and satellites. He also investigates tectonic deformation of the crust. Previously, Dr. Sandwell worked as a research geodesist at the National Geodetic Survey and as a research geophysicist at The University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Sandwell is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, AAAS, AGU, and the Geological Society of America. He earned a PhD in geophysics and space physics from the University of California, Los Angeles. Dr. Sandwell served on the Earth Surface and Interior: Dynamics and Hazards panel for the most recent decadal survey for Earth science and applications from space.

SUSAN L. USTIN is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Land, Air and Water Resources and the Institute for the Environment at the University of California, Davis. Dr. Ustin’s expertise is in plant ecology and physiological ecology applied to various remotes sensing instruments, primarily in applications of imaging spectroscopy. Her experience includes measurements obtained via aircrafts, small drones, NASA satellites, and commercial satellites. Dr. Ustin is a past member of the science teams for NASA’s Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer and the planned Hyperspectral Infrared Imager satellite, among other NASA missions. She is a fellow of the AGU and the Ecological Society of America. Dr. Ustin received the William T. Pecora Award from NASA and the USGS and received an honorary PhD from the University of Zurich, Switzerland. She earned a PhD in botany from the University of California, Davis. Dr. Ustin served on the Marine and Terrestrial Ecosystems and Natural Resource Management panel for the most recent decadal survey for Earth science and applications from space.

ISABELLA VELICOGNA is a professor in the Department of Earth System Science at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), and a scientist at JPL. Dr. Velicogna has also served as the UCI Physical Sciences Associate Dean of Graduate Studies, Equity, and Inclusion. Dr. Velicogna studies the cryosphere components of the water cycle and their response to climate forcing using a variety of multisensory geophysical techniques. Her work has implications for future sea-level rise, Earth system modeling, and the global land–water cycle. Dr. Velicogna also studies the changes in land ecosystems associated with changes in land hydrology and develops tools to better predict the regional patterns of sea-level rise. She is a recipient of the AGU’s Joanne Simpson Medal, the EGU’s Vening Meinesz Medal, and the NASA Award for Outstanding Scientific Achievement. She is a Kavli Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences and a fellow of the AGU and AAAS. Dr. Velicogna earned a PhD in engineering (geodynamics) from the University of Trieste, Italy.

XUBIN ZENG is the Agnese N. Haury Chair and a professor in the Department of Hydrology and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Arizona. Dr. Zeng is also the founding director of the intercollege Climate Dynamics and Hydrometeorolgy Collaborative and an affiliated professor in applied mathematics, remote sensing and spatial analysis, and global change interdisciplinary programs. His research focuses on land–atmosphere–ocean interface processes, weather and climate modeling, hydrometeorology, remote sensing, nonlinear dynamics, and big data analytics. Dr. Zeng has held numerous leadership positions at national and international organizations, including currently co-chairing the Scientific Steering Group of

Global Energy and Water Exchanges (GEWEX)—a core project of the World Climate Research Program (WCRP), and chairing the WCRP Global Precipitation Experiment (GPEX) Science Plan Development Team. He is a fellow of the American Meteorological Society, AAAS, and AGU. Dr. Zeng has received the NSF Special Creativity Award and the AMS Charles Franklin Brooks Award for Outstanding Service to the Society. He earned a PhD in atmospheric sciences from Colorado State University. Dr. Zeng served on the Weather and Air Quality: Minutes to Subseasonal panel for the most recent decadal survey for Earth science and applications from space.

STAFF

TARINI KONCHADY is an associate program officer on the National Academies’ Space Studies Board (SSB). Before joining the SSB, she was a graduate teaching and research assistant at Texas A&M University. Her research focused on expanding the utility of variable stars in the extragalactic distance scale to enable more precise measurements of the Hubble constant. Dr. Konchady also has extensive experience in science communication and outreach, notably as a media fellow for the American Astronomical Society (AAS) and as a member of the Astrobites collaboration. Her policy experience began with an AAS Congressional Visits Day and continued through the Lloyd V. Berkner Space Policy Internship at the SSB and a graduate certificate in public management from the Bush School of Government and Public Service. Dr. Konchady earned a PhD and an MS in astronomy from Texas A&M University and a BS in physics from Johns Hopkins University.

DWAYNE A. DAY is a senior program officer and a study director at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. He has served as the study director for the planetary sciences decadal survey midterm assessments, as well as assisted on previous planetary science and astronomy and astrophysics decadal surveys. Dr. Day has also served as the study director for studies on NASA’s near Earth objects efforts, advanced aerial mobility, and the size of the NASA astronaut corps. Prior to coming to the National Academies, he was an investigator on the Columbia Accident Investigation Board and the historian for the Congressional Budget Office, and worked for the U.S. Air Force and The George Washington University Space Policy Institute. Dr. Day is a frequent author on civil, military, and intelligence space history and policy and a former Guggenheim Fellow and Verville Fellow at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum.

LINDA M. WALKER, a senior project assistant, has been with the National Academies since 2007. Before her assignment with the SSB, she was on assignment with the National Academies Press. Prior to working at the National Academies, she was with the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy in Falls Church, Virginia. Ms. Walker has 28 years of administrative experience.

DIONNA WISE is a program coordinator with the SSB, having previously worked for the National Academies’ Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Recently, she was the lead study coordinator for the Astro2020 decadal survey. Wise has a long career in office administration, having worked as a supervisor in several capacities and fields. She attended the University of Colorado Colorado Springs and majored in psychology.

ARTHUR A. CHARO has been a senior program officer with the SSB since 1995. He has directed studies resulting in some 41 reports, notably the inaugural “decadal surveys” in solar and space physics (2002) and Earth science and applications from space (2007). He also served as the study director for the second Earth science decadal (2018) and the second (2012) and third (in preparation) decadal surveys in solar and

space physics. Dr. Charo received his PhD in experimental atomic and molecular physics in 1981 from Duke University and was a post-doctoral fellow in chemical physics at Harvard University from 1982 to 1985. He then pursued his interests in national security and arms control as a fellow from 1985 to 1988 at Harvard University’s Center for Science and International Affairs. From 1988 to 1995, he worked as a senior analyst and study director in the International Security and Space Program at the Congressional Office of Technology Assessment. In addition to contributing to SSB reports, he is the author of research papers in the field of molecular spectroscopy, reports on arms control and space policy, and the monograph “Continental Air Defense: A Neglected Dimension of Strategic Defense” (University Press of America, 1990). Dr. Charo is a recipient of a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship in International Security (1985–1987) and a Harvard-Sloan Foundation Fellowship (1987–1988). He was a 1988–1989 AAAS Congressional Science Fellow, sponsored by the American Institute of Physics.

COLLEEN N. HARTMAN joined the National Academies in 2018, as the director for both the SSB and the Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board (ASEB). After beginning her government career as a presidential management intern under Ronald Reagan, Dr. Hartman worked on Capitol Hill for House Science and Technology Committee Chair Don Fuqua, as a senior engineer building spacecraft at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, and as a senior policy analyst at the White House. She has served as the Planetary Division director, deputy associate administrator, and acting associate administrator at NASA’s Science Mission Directorate; as the deputy assistant administrator at NOAA; and as the deputy center director and director of science and exploration at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. Dr. Hartman has built and launched scientific balloon payloads, overseen the development of hardware for a variety of Earth-observing spacecraft, and served as NASA program manager for dozens of missions, the most successful of which was the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE). Data from the COBE spacecraft gained two NASA-sponsored scientists the Nobel Prize in physics in 2006. Dr. Hartman also played a pivotal role in developing innovative approaches to powering space probes destined for the solar system’s farthest reaches. While at NASA Headquarters, she spearheaded the selection process for the New Horizons probe to Pluto. She helped gain administration and congressional approval for an entirely new class of funded missions that are competitively selected, called “New Frontiers,” to explore the planets, asteroids, and comets in the solar system. She has several master’s degrees and a PhD in physics. Dr. Hartman has received numerous awards, including two prestigious Presidential Rank Awards.