Alumnus Walt Petersen awarded NASA Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal

Department of Atmospheric Science alumnus Walt Petersen, a research physical scientist at the NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, has been awarded the NASA Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal in an Aug. 22 ceremony at the center in Huntsville, Alabama. This prestigious NASA medal is reserved for exceptional scientific contributions toward achievement of the NASA mission. It is given for individual efforts that have resulted in a key scientific discovery or resulted in contribution of fundamental importance in this field or significantly enhanced understanding of the field.

The citation for Petersen’s award reads: “for scientific contributions to the Global Precipitation Measurement mission and leadership of the ground validation program.” Petersen received his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the department in 1992 and 1997, respectively.