Dr. Waleed Abdalati has been NASA Chief Scientist

NASA Chief Scientist

The Chief Scientist was the most senior science position at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration . The Chief Scientist served as the principal advisor to the NASA Administrator in science issues and as interface to the national and international science community, ensuring that NASA...

 since 3 January 2011. Abdalati was named to this position on 13 December 2010 by NASA

NASA

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...

 Administrator Charles Bolden. Abdalati previously served NASA

NASA

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...

 as Head of Cryospheric Sciences at Goddard Space Flight Center

Goddard Space Flight Center

The Goddard Space Flight Center is a major NASA space research laboratory established on May 1, 1959 as NASA's first space flight center. GSFC employs approximately 10,000 civil servants and contractors, and is located approximately northeast of Washington, D.C. in Greenbelt, Maryland, USA. GSFC,...

 between January 2004 and June 2008.

Academic Background

Abdalati is seconded to NASA

NASA

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...

 from the University of Colorado

University of Colorado

The University of Colorado system is a system of public universities in Colorado consisting of three universities in four campuses: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, and University of Colorado Denver in downtown Denver and at the Anschutz Medical Campus in...

 at Boulder, where he is Director of the Earth Science and Observation Center at the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences

Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences

The Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences is a research institute that is sponsored jointly by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration /Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research and the University of Colorado at Boulder.- Quick facts :* Established in 1967 as...

 and Associate Professor in the Department of Geography. Abdalati earned a Bachelor of Science (cum laude) from Syracuse University

Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College...

 Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in 1986, and later completed his graduate studies at the University of Colorado

University of Colorado

The University of Colorado system is a system of public universities in Colorado consisting of three universities in four campuses: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, and University of Colorado Denver in downtown Denver and at the Anschutz Medical Campus in...

, where he received a M.Sc. in 1991 from the Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences and a Ph.D. in 1996 from the Department of Geography. In his doctoral research, Abdalati developed an algorithm to use the ratio of two microwave bands of the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager

Special Sensor Microwave/Imager

The special sensor microwave/imager is a seven-channel, four-frequency, linearly polarized passive microwave radiometer system. It is flown on board the United States Air Force Defense Meteorological Satellite Program Block 5D-2 satellites. The instrument measures surface/atmospheric microwave...

 (SSM/I) sensor aboard Defense Meteorological Satellite Program

Defense Meteorological Satellite Program

The Defense Meteorological Satellite Program monitors meteorological, oceanographic, and solar-terrestrial physics for the United States Department of Defense. The program is now run by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The mission of the satellites was revealed in March 1973...

 (DMSP) vehicles to remotely detect changes in the spatial extent of the Greenland ice sheet

Greenland ice sheet

The Greenland ice sheet is a vast body of ice covering , roughly 80% of the surface of Greenland. It is the second largest ice body in the world, after the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The ice sheet is almost long in a north-south direction, and its greatest width is at a latitude of 77°N, near its...

 experiencing melt each year.

Honors and Awards

• NASA GSFC Center Director’s Team Recognition Award, 2007
• American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronaustics Space Systems Award, 2006
• National Aeronautics and Space Administration Exceptional Service Medal, 2004
• NASA Group Achievement Award, ICESat Science Team, 2004
• NASA Office of Earth Science Award, 2003
• NASA Group Achievement Award, Honor Award Team 2003
• NASA Office of Earth Science Terra Peer Award, 2002
• NASA Office of Earth Science Award, 2002
• NASA Office of Earth Science Award, 2001
• Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, 1999
• Tau Beta Pi
  Tau Beta Pi
  The Tau Beta Pi Association is the oldest engineering honor society in the United States and the second oldest collegiate honor society in America. It honors engineering students who have shown a history of academic achievement as well as a commitment to personal and professional integrity...
  
  National Engineering Honor Society (since 1985)