ORAU
Relating satellite microwave observations of precipitation and the large-scale e
ORAU, Pasadena, California, United States, 91122
Relating satellite microwave observations of precipitation and the large-scale environment to improve the understanding and predicting of tropical cyclones
NASA Postdoctoral Program (NPP) opportunity administered by ORAU. The NASA Postdoctoral Program (NPP) offers unique research opportunities to highly-talented scientists to engage in ongoing NASA research projects at a NASA Center, NASA Headquarters, or at a NASA-affiliated research institute. These one- to three-year fellowships are competitive and are designed to advance NASA’s missions in space science, Earth science, aeronautics, space operations, exploration systems, and astrobiology.
Description: Tropical Cyclones (TCs) are the product of complex multi-scale processes and interactions. The environment has long been recognized as a key factor in TC evolution. Recent advances show that the distribution and intensity of convective activity influence the storm's evolution, intensity and size, but understanding of these processes and their non-linear interactions remains incomplete. Progress is expected from properly accounting for observations of the environment and of inner-core processes which are themselves influenced by the environment (e.g., moisture, shear). This motivates investigating the role of convective organization, particularly with respect to dynamically significant vortex structure and environmental shear.
Forecasting TC evolution today is often based on IR cloud-pattern analyses. IR observations are sensitive to the cloud shield and do not reveal detailed convective organization beneath the cloud. Observations from low-Earth-orbit microwave radiometers are available and can provide the missing information. The challenge is to relate IR data to convective organization revealed by passive microwave observations to improve the analysis of storms (amount, intensity and organization of convection in relation to IR-detected cloud patterns). Establishing relationships between the large-scale environment and storm-scale convection will help improve the predictability of TC evolution in the near term.
Responsibilities The successful candidate will collect a comprehensive set of satellite observations of named Tropical Storms and tropical depressions from 1999–2022. The dataset will include geostationary IR data; passive microwave observations from LEO satellites; concurrent reanalysis fields.
They will develop analyses tools and metrics to test several hypotheses presented in the literature and develop new hypotheses if needed. They will join a group of scientists working on similar research and will collaborate with them. They will prepare journal papers and participate in the development of new proposals.
References
Haddad, Z. S., R. Sawaya, S. Kacimi, O.O. Sy, F. J. Turk and J. Steward, 2017: Interpreting mm-wave radiances over tropical convective clouds. J. Geophys. Res. Atmos. 122, 1650-1654 (doi:10.1002/2016JD025923)
Haddad, Z. S., O.O. Sy, S. Hristova-Veleva, and G.L. Stephens, 2017: Derived observations from frequently-sampled microwave measurements of precipitation. Part I: Relations to atmospheric thermodynamics. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens. 55, 3441-3453 (doi: 10.1109/TGRS.)
Hristova-Veleva, S. M., Z. S. Haddad, B. W. Stiles, T. P. J. Shen, N. Niamsuwan, F. J. Turk, P. P. Li, B. W. Knosp, Q. A. Vu, B. H. Lambrigtsen, and W. L. Poulsen, 2016: Possible predictors for the rapid intensification and evolution of hurricanes from near-coincident satellite observations of the structure of precipitation and surface winds: Hurricane Joaquin, 32nd AMS Conference on Hurricanes and Tropical Meteorology.
Hristova-Veleva, S. M., and Coauthors, 2020: An eye on the storm: Integrating a wealth of data for quickly advancing the physical understanding and forecasting of tropical cyclones. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 101, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-19-0020.1
Hristova-Veleva, S., Z. Haddad, A. Chau, B. W. Stiles, F. J. Turk, P. P. Li , B. Knosp, Q. Vu, T.-P. Shen, B. Lambrigtsen, E.-K. Seo, H. Su, 2021: “Impact of microphysical parameterizations on simulated hurricanes: Using multiparameter satellite data to determine the Particle Size Distributions that produce most realistic storms”. Atmosphere, 12(2), 154.
Kieper, M. E., and H. Jiang, 2012: Predicting tropical cyclone rapid intensification using the 37 GHz ring pattern identified from passive microwave measurements, Geophys. Res. Lett., 39, L13804.
Lonfat, M., F.D. Marks, and S.S.Chen, 2004: Precipitation Distribution in Tropical Cyclones using the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) microwave imager: A Global Perspective. Mon.Wea.Review 132(7) 1645-1660 (July 2004)
Nolan, D., 2011: Evaluating environmental favorableness for tropical cyclone development with the method of point downscaling. J. Adv. Model. Earth Syst., 3, M08001.
Tao, D., and F. Zhang, 2014: Effect of environmental shear, sea-surface temperature and ambient moisture on the formation and predictability of tropical cyclones: an ensemble-mean perspective. Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems.
Wu, Longtao, H. Su, R. G. Fovell, B. Wang, J. T. Shen, B. H. Kahn, S. M. Hristova-Veleva, B. H. Lambrigtsen, E. J. Fetzer, J. H. Jiang, 2012: Relationship of Environmental Relative Humidity with Tropical Cyclone Intensity and Intensification Rate over North Atlantic, Geophys. Res. Lett., 39, L20809.
Field of Science Earth Science
Advisors
Svetla Hristova-Veleva
Joe Turk
svetla.hristova@jpl.nasa.gov
joseph.turk@jpl.nasa.gov
818-354-7314
818-354-0315
Eligibility Requirements
Degree: Doctoral Degree.
Seniority level
Internship
Employment type
Full-time
Job function
Other
Industries
Government Administration
Application Deadline 11/1/2025 6:00:59 PM Eastern Time Zone
How To Apply All applications must be submitted in Zintellect. Please visit the NASA Postdoctoral Program website for application instructions and requirements: How to Apply | NASA Postdoctoral Program (orau.org)
Application Components
Research proposal
Three letters of recommendation
Official doctoral transcript documents
Eligibility and Nationality Applications with citizens from Designated Countries will not be accepted at this time, unless they are Legal Permanent Residents of the United States. A complete list of Designated Countries can be found at NASA's export control site: https://www.nasa.gov/oiir/export-control.
Nationalities currently eligible to apply
U.S. Citizens;
U.S. Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR);
Foreign Nationals eligible for an Exchange Visitor J-1 visa status; and
Applicants for LPR, asylees, or refugees in the U.S. at the time of application with 1) a valid EAD card and 2) I-485 or I-589 forms in pending status
Questions about this opportunity? Please email npp@orau.org
Point of Contact
Mikeala
#J-18808-Ljbffr
Description: Tropical Cyclones (TCs) are the product of complex multi-scale processes and interactions. The environment has long been recognized as a key factor in TC evolution. Recent advances show that the distribution and intensity of convective activity influence the storm's evolution, intensity and size, but understanding of these processes and their non-linear interactions remains incomplete. Progress is expected from properly accounting for observations of the environment and of inner-core processes which are themselves influenced by the environment (e.g., moisture, shear). This motivates investigating the role of convective organization, particularly with respect to dynamically significant vortex structure and environmental shear.
Forecasting TC evolution today is often based on IR cloud-pattern analyses. IR observations are sensitive to the cloud shield and do not reveal detailed convective organization beneath the cloud. Observations from low-Earth-orbit microwave radiometers are available and can provide the missing information. The challenge is to relate IR data to convective organization revealed by passive microwave observations to improve the analysis of storms (amount, intensity and organization of convection in relation to IR-detected cloud patterns). Establishing relationships between the large-scale environment and storm-scale convection will help improve the predictability of TC evolution in the near term.
Responsibilities The successful candidate will collect a comprehensive set of satellite observations of named Tropical Storms and tropical depressions from 1999–2022. The dataset will include geostationary IR data; passive microwave observations from LEO satellites; concurrent reanalysis fields.
They will develop analyses tools and metrics to test several hypotheses presented in the literature and develop new hypotheses if needed. They will join a group of scientists working on similar research and will collaborate with them. They will prepare journal papers and participate in the development of new proposals.
References
Haddad, Z. S., R. Sawaya, S. Kacimi, O.O. Sy, F. J. Turk and J. Steward, 2017: Interpreting mm-wave radiances over tropical convective clouds. J. Geophys. Res. Atmos. 122, 1650-1654 (doi:10.1002/2016JD025923)
Haddad, Z. S., O.O. Sy, S. Hristova-Veleva, and G.L. Stephens, 2017: Derived observations from frequently-sampled microwave measurements of precipitation. Part I: Relations to atmospheric thermodynamics. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens. 55, 3441-3453 (doi: 10.1109/TGRS.)
Hristova-Veleva, S. M., Z. S. Haddad, B. W. Stiles, T. P. J. Shen, N. Niamsuwan, F. J. Turk, P. P. Li, B. W. Knosp, Q. A. Vu, B. H. Lambrigtsen, and W. L. Poulsen, 2016: Possible predictors for the rapid intensification and evolution of hurricanes from near-coincident satellite observations of the structure of precipitation and surface winds: Hurricane Joaquin, 32nd AMS Conference on Hurricanes and Tropical Meteorology.
Hristova-Veleva, S. M., and Coauthors, 2020: An eye on the storm: Integrating a wealth of data for quickly advancing the physical understanding and forecasting of tropical cyclones. Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 101, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-19-0020.1
Hristova-Veleva, S., Z. Haddad, A. Chau, B. W. Stiles, F. J. Turk, P. P. Li , B. Knosp, Q. Vu, T.-P. Shen, B. Lambrigtsen, E.-K. Seo, H. Su, 2021: “Impact of microphysical parameterizations on simulated hurricanes: Using multiparameter satellite data to determine the Particle Size Distributions that produce most realistic storms”. Atmosphere, 12(2), 154.
Kieper, M. E., and H. Jiang, 2012: Predicting tropical cyclone rapid intensification using the 37 GHz ring pattern identified from passive microwave measurements, Geophys. Res. Lett., 39, L13804.
Lonfat, M., F.D. Marks, and S.S.Chen, 2004: Precipitation Distribution in Tropical Cyclones using the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) microwave imager: A Global Perspective. Mon.Wea.Review 132(7) 1645-1660 (July 2004)
Nolan, D., 2011: Evaluating environmental favorableness for tropical cyclone development with the method of point downscaling. J. Adv. Model. Earth Syst., 3, M08001.
Tao, D., and F. Zhang, 2014: Effect of environmental shear, sea-surface temperature and ambient moisture on the formation and predictability of tropical cyclones: an ensemble-mean perspective. Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems.
Wu, Longtao, H. Su, R. G. Fovell, B. Wang, J. T. Shen, B. H. Kahn, S. M. Hristova-Veleva, B. H. Lambrigtsen, E. J. Fetzer, J. H. Jiang, 2012: Relationship of Environmental Relative Humidity with Tropical Cyclone Intensity and Intensification Rate over North Atlantic, Geophys. Res. Lett., 39, L20809.
Field of Science Earth Science
Advisors
Svetla Hristova-Veleva
Joe Turk
svetla.hristova@jpl.nasa.gov
joseph.turk@jpl.nasa.gov
818-354-7314
818-354-0315
Eligibility Requirements
Degree: Doctoral Degree.
Seniority level
Internship
Employment type
Full-time
Job function
Other
Industries
Government Administration
Application Deadline 11/1/2025 6:00:59 PM Eastern Time Zone
How To Apply All applications must be submitted in Zintellect. Please visit the NASA Postdoctoral Program website for application instructions and requirements: How to Apply | NASA Postdoctoral Program (orau.org)
Application Components
Research proposal
Three letters of recommendation
Official doctoral transcript documents
Eligibility and Nationality Applications with citizens from Designated Countries will not be accepted at this time, unless they are Legal Permanent Residents of the United States. A complete list of Designated Countries can be found at NASA's export control site: https://www.nasa.gov/oiir/export-control.
Nationalities currently eligible to apply
U.S. Citizens;
U.S. Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR);
Foreign Nationals eligible for an Exchange Visitor J-1 visa status; and
Applicants for LPR, asylees, or refugees in the U.S. at the time of application with 1) a valid EAD card and 2) I-485 or I-589 forms in pending status
Questions about this opportunity? Please email npp@orau.org
Point of Contact
Mikeala
#J-18808-Ljbffr