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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Weather Assistant

💰 $ - $

MeteorologyWeather OperationsForecastingData Science

🎯 Role Definition

The Weather Assistant supports operational weather services by producing timely, accurate forecasts and weather information, monitoring observational networks (radar, satellite, surface, upper‑air), performing quality‑controlled data processing, and communicating actionable weather guidance to internal teams and external stakeholders. This role combines foundational meteorology, practical data analysis, and clear public-facing communication to support forecasting operations, nowcasting, and weather‑related decision support for emergency management, aviation, transport, utilities, and media.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Meteorological Technician / Weather Observer with hands‑on station and instrument experience
  • Junior Forecast Assistant, Nowcasting Technician, or Broadcast Weather Intern
  • Data Analyst with experience in environmental or time‑series data and basic meteorology

Advancement To:

  • Senior Weather Analyst / Forecast Scientist
  • Operational Forecast Lead / Duty Meteorologist
  • Nowcasting Lead or Meteorology Team Supervisor

Lateral Moves:

  • Broadcast Meteorologist / Weather Presenter
  • GIS Analyst for environmental or emergency services
  • Environmental Data Scientist or Climate Analyst

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Monitor real‑time observational feeds (radar, satellite, surface stations, AIS/aircraft reports, automated weather stations) and synthesize these inputs into concise situational summaries that inform forecasts and operational briefings.
  • Prepare and issue short‑term nowcasts and routine forecasts (hourly, 6‑hour, 12‑hour, 24‑hour) using a combination of observational analysis, model guidance (deterministic and ensemble), and local climatology to maximize accuracy for target regions.
  • Interpret numerical weather prediction (NWP) model outputs (e.g., ECMWF, GFS, NAM, high‑resolution convection‑allowing models such as WRF) and translate ensemble spread into probability‑based messaging that supports risk‑based decision making.
  • Conduct synoptic and mesoscale analysis including frontal positions, jet stream structure, vorticity advection, thermal gradients, and convective initiation potential to identify hazards and forecast uncertainty.
  • Analyze radar and satellite imagery to detect and track convection, precipitation type and intensity, wind shear, mesocyclonic features, and rapidly developing hazardous weather, and update forecasts and alerts accordingly.
  • Maintain and perform routine quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) of ingestion pipelines for observational data, correcting, flagging, or documenting erroneous automated reports and instrument failures.
  • Execute automated and manual verification workflows to measure forecast performance, generate verification metrics (e.g., bias, RMSE, Brier score), and apply learning loops to continuously improve forecast guidance.
  • Draft, review, and distribute weather alerts, warnings, and advisory products according to organizational SOPs and national/regional weather service guidelines to protect life, property, and critical infrastructure.
  • Contribute to the configuration and maintenance of operational tools and visualization platforms (e.g., AWIPS, Metview, IDV, GIS dashboards, web map services) that support situational awareness and stakeholder briefing.
  • Run and maintain scripts and reproducible pipelines (Python, R, Bash) for ingesting model fields, observational datasets, statistical post‑processing, and routine forecast product generation.
  • Support development and tuning of statistical and machine learning post‑processing techniques (MOS, calibration, downscaling) to refine model output for local conditions and specific client needs.
  • Collaborate with internal meteorologists, hydrologists, and domain experts to produce sector‑specific forecasts and decision support packages for aviation, maritime, energy, transportation, and emergency management partners.
  • Attend and actively participate in shift handovers, operational briefings, and incident response calls to ensure continuity, situational awareness, and effective communication during high‑impact events.
  • Produce educational, client‑facing, and public content (text forecasts, social media posts, briefings, slide decks) that clearly translates meteorological analysis into actionable guidance and recommended protective actions.
  • Perform observational network maintenance coordination by liaising with instrument technicians and vendors to diagnose issues with radar, lidar, AWS, radiosondes, and telemetry systems and minimize data gaps.
  • Apply WMO/FAA/ICAO guidelines and local regulatory requirements when preparing official meteorological products and when interfacing with aviation and marine stakeholders.
  • Assist in the deployment and testing of field campaigns, temporary instrumentation, and mobile sensors to support targeted research, validation, or emergency operations.
  • Maintain up‑to‑date documentation of operational procedures, forecasting checklists, and runbooks to ensure reproducibility and on‑shift consistency for forecasting teams and substitutes.
  • Support emergency management by rapidly compiling tailored weather impact summaries, timelines, and probable scenarios for decision makers during evolving severe weather, flooding, storm surge, or winter storms.
  • Perform data archiving, metadata curation, and cataloging of observational and model products to enable historical analysis, model verification, and regulatory compliance.
  • Participate in continuous improvement projects, pilots, and transition‑of‑research activities to operationalize novel algorithms, nowcasting tools, and ensemble products into production workflows.
  • Mentor and train junior staff and interns on operational forecasting practices, model interpretation, data quality control, and effective communication of uncertainty to non‑technical audiences.
  • Coordinate with IT and cloud engineering teams to ensure robust, low‑latency ingest, storage, and compute environments for operational modeling, visualization, and alerting systems.
  • Review and adapt forecast templates and automated product generation workflows based on seasonal changes, evolving climatology, and stakeholder feedback to maintain relevance and accuracy.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc data requests and exploratory data analysis.
  • Contribute to the organization's data strategy and roadmap.
  • Collaborate with business units to translate data needs into engineering requirements.
  • Participate in sprint planning and agile ceremonies within the data engineering team.
  • Assist with user acceptance testing (UAT) and validation of new forecasting tools and client portals.
  • Provide subject matter expertise during stakeholder workshops, drills, and tabletop exercises focused on weather resilience and continuity planning.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Strong grounding in meteorology and atmospheric dynamics, including synoptic and mesoscale analysis, convection, boundary layer processes, and precipitation physics.
  • Proficient in numerical weather prediction (NWP) model interpretation including deterministic and ensemble systems (e.g., ECMWF, GFS, HRRR, WRF).
  • Hands‑on experience with radar and satellite interpretation (Doppler radar, dual‑pol products, IR/visible/Water Vapor satellite imagery).
  • Practical skills in Python (xarray, pandas, numpy, scipy), R, or similar for data processing, automation, and forecast product generation.
  • Experience with data visualization and dashboarding tools (Matplotlib, Plotly, D3, Grafana, or similar) to communicate complex information clearly.
  • Familiarity with meteorological workstation software (e.g., AWIPS II, MetPy, Metview) and GIS platforms (ArcGIS/QGIS) for spatial forecasting and mapping.
  • Knowledge of observational networks and instrumentation (surface stations, radiosondes, AWS, buoys, radar), including data formats (BUFR, GRIB, NetCDF) and ingestion techniques.
  • Ability to develop and maintain APIs, cron jobs, and ETL pipelines for ingesting model and sensor data; familiarity with SQL and NoSQL datastores for time‑series data.
  • Experience with forecast verification and performance measurement, including probabilistic verification methods and basic statistics.
  • Familiarity with automated alerting systems, message dissemination protocols, and standards (CAP, WMO codes, ICAO METAR/TAF).
  • Basic understanding of cloud computing and containerization (AWS, GCP, Docker, Kubernetes) to support scalable operational deployments.
  • Exposure to machine learning or statistical post‑processing (MOS, calibration, ensemble model output statistics) is a plus.

Soft Skills

  • Clear, concise verbal and written communication skills for technical briefings and public communications.
  • High situational awareness and ability to make calm, timely decisions under operational pressure or during severe weather events.
  • Strong attention to detail and commitment to data quality and reproducibility.
  • Collaborative team player who can work across interdisciplinary teams (operations, IT, product, emergency management).
  • Adaptability and willingness to learn new models, tools, and evolving best practices in meteorology and data science.
  • Customer‑focused mindset with an emphasis on translating technical weather information into actionable guidance for stakeholders.
  • Time management and prioritization skills to balance continuous monitoring, scheduled forecasting tasks, and emergent incidents.
  • Problem‑solving aptitude with the ability to troubleshoot data ingestion and processing pipelines quickly.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor's degree in Meteorology, Atmospheric Science, Environmental Science, Physics, Applied Mathematics, Computer Science with meteorology coursework, or related field.

Preferred Education:

  • Master's degree in Meteorology, Atmospheric Science, Climate Science, Data Science with emphasis on geosciences, or equivalent professional experience and certifications.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Meteorology / Atmospheric Science
  • Climate Science / Environmental Science
  • Applied Mathematics / Statistics
  • Computer Science / Data Science
  • Geographical Information Systems (GIS)

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 1–5 years in operational weather forecasting, meteorological technician roles, or environmental data analysis; internships and field campaign experience may substitute for part of the minimum experience.

Preferred:

  • 3+ years of operational forecasting or meteorological support in a national/regional weather service, private forecasting firm, aviation/marine meteorology, or energy/utility sector.
  • Demonstrated experience with real‑time operational tools, forecast product generation, and coordination with emergency management or critical infrastructure stakeholders.
  • Prior shift work experience, including night and weekend rotations, and familiarity with handover procedures and continuous monitoring environments.
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