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RELEASE NO. 02-066
NASA Langley scientist earns National award
A scientist from NASA Langley Research Center will receive a
Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers
(PECASE) at a White House ceremony on July 12.
The National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) selected
James Crawford, a research scientist in NASA Langley’s
Atmospheric Sciences Competency and first-ever Langley recipient
for the national award. Presented annually to a select few, the
PECASE is the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. Government on
outstanding researchers who are beginning their independent
research careers.
In addition to the honor of being selected, the PECASE awards
Crawford with five years of funding totaling almost half a million
dollars to pursue his research in the
Global Tropospheric Experiment (GTE). GTE, managed by NASA
Langley, is NASA’s contribution to the United States’
Global Tropospheric Chemistry Program that is part of an
international effort to study the lower atmosphere.
"The success of GTE depends on the cooperation of over 30
separate investigative teams involved in both collecting and
interpreting atmospheric chemical data," said Crawford. "In that
sense, this award represents an endorsement of GTE’s larger
scientific goals. The GTE data set continues to deserve increased
attention, and I plan to use the research money to attract new
investigators to explore the data for potentially unmined
information."
After a decade of experience with GTE, Crawford became the
deputy mission scientist for the
Transport and Chemical Evolution over the Pacific (TRACE-P)
experiment. TRACE-P, the most recent GTE aircraft-based field
campaign, occurred during the spring of 2001 off the Pacific East
Asian coast.
Crawford received the award based on his TRACE-P research
proposal that investigates the atmospheric chemistry of ozone and
associated gases by incorporating airborne observations of these
gases into computer simulations of their interactions.
Understanding this chemistry is crucial to understanding how
pollution gases are transformed and ultimately removed from the
atmosphere.
Crawford earned his undergraduate degree in mathematics from the
U.S. Military Academy at West Point. After spending five years on
active duty in the U.S. Army, he enrolled in the Earth and
Atmospheric Science program at the Georgia Institute of Technology
in Atlanta. At Georgia Tech, he first began working with GTE and
ultimately earned a doctorate in atmospheric chemistry. He joined
the project full time as a NASA Langley employee in 1997.
The NSTC annually selects PECASE awardees based upon the
recommendations of 10 federal agencies. The PECASE awards are
intended to recognize some of the finest scientists and engineers
who, while early in their research careers, show exceptional
potential for leadership at the frontiers of scientific
knowledge.
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