Physical Science Administrator (Program Director)

The National Science Foundation is seeking qualified candidate for a Physical Science Administrator (Program Director) position for the Lower Atmosphere Observing Facilities program in the Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences (AGS) within the Directorate for Geosciences (GEO), Alexandria, VA.

AGS supports fundamental research into the physical, chemical, and biological processes that impact the composition and physical phenomena and behavior of matter between the sun and the surface of the Earth. This includes a wide variety of important processes that impact humans and society, such as weather, climate, air quality and space weather. Specific programs include studies of the physics, chemistry, and dynamics of earth's upper and lower atmosphere and its space environment, and research on climate processes and variations.

AGS supports the atmospheric and related sciences community with a portfolio of observing facilities and through the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), an NSF-sponsored Federally Funded Research and Development Center based in Boulder, Colorado. The scientific oversight of NCAR is the responsibility of the entire AGS division, with leadership, oversight and program management provided by the AGS NCAR and Facilities Section (NFS). NFS also manages the AGS programs in lower atmosphere observing facilities and in education and cross-cutting research. The NSF lower atmosphere observing facilities include the NSF C-130 and G-V aircraft operated by NCAR, the University of Wyoming King Air, and airborne and ground-based instrumentation such as radars and sounding systems that are operated by NCAR and other institutions

Working closely with colleagues in the NCAR and Facilities Section, AGS, and throughout NSF, the incumbent will have primary responsibility for the programmatic oversight, award management and lifecycle planning of the AGS-funded lower atmosphere observing facilities. The incumbent will also support the Section’s oversight of NCAR and cross-cutting programs. Specific duties will include:

• Manage solicitations, programs and budgets for operating and deploying AGS national lower atmospheric observing facilities.
• Oversee and serve as the primary point of contact for the lower atmosphere observing facilities operated by the NCAR.
• Work with NSF science program officers to ensure that the deployment of the AGS lower atmosphere observing facilities is well-coordinated, technically feasible and equitable.
• Working with colleagues, the scientific community and facility managers, lead the development of long-range plans for the AGS national lower atmospheric observing facilities.
• Serve as a Divisional point of contact and program officer for NSF-wide research infrastructure initiatives.
• Serve on intra-agency, interagency and international committees involving lower atmosphere observing facilities