Meteorologist (Fire Support)

Full Job Description

This position is located at a Forest Service Geographic Area Coordination Center (GACC).

The position entails being an expert in fire meteorology and climatology for all Federal and State wildland fire agencies represented in the California Wildfire Coordinating Group (CWCG), including several that are represented at the GACC.

For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Brian Grabowski at brian.grabowski@usda.gov or Deirdre Cherry at deirdre.cherry@usda.gov.

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement.

For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards.

Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education. Provide course descriptions as necessary.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social).

Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Note on Experience: Your resume must clearly document the following for each block of work experience; the beginning day, month and year the work assignment started and ended; the hours worked per week; position title, and series and grade if applicable; and description of duties performed.

This information must be provided for each permanent, temporary or seasonal appointment/work assignment or volunteer work and should be clearly documented as a separate block of time.

Incomplete, inaccurate or conflicting work history may not be credited for qualifications purposes. This can result in an applicant not being considered for the position.

Basic Requirement for the Meteorology Series, 1340: A.

Degree: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree in Meteorology, atmospheric science, or other natural science major that included: 1.

At least 24 semester (36 quarter) hours of credit in meteorology/atmospheric science including a minimum of: Six semester hours of atmospheric dynamics and thermodynamics;* Six semester hours of analysis and prediction of weather systems (synoptic/mesoscale); Three semester hours of physical meteorology; and Two semester hours of remote sensing of the atmosphere and/or instrumentation.

2. Six semester hours of physics, with at least one course that includes laboratory sessions.* 3. Three semester hours of ordinary differential equations.* 4.

At least nine semester hours of course work appropriate for a physical science major in any combination of three or more of the following: physical hydrology, statistics, chemistry, physical oceanography, physical climatology, radiative transfer, aeronomy, advanced thermodynamics, advanced electricity and magnetism, light and optics, and computer science.

* There is a prerequisite or corequisite of calculus for course work in atmospheric dynamics and thermodynamics, physics, and differential equations.

Calculus courses must be appropriate for a physical science major. OR B. Combination of education and experience -- course work as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement, you must also possess experience and/or directly related education in the amounts listed below.

Specialized Experience Requirement: GS-11: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-09 level in the Federal service.

Specialized experience is defined as three or more of the following: Assisting in operations of the weather department at a Geographic Area Coordination Center (GACC) or similar field office; and/or Issuing weather forecasts, warnings, and briefings to field-going operational personnel; and/or Assisting Agency (or comparable entity) personnel in delivering training courses that included instruction of basic meteorology, weather observations, forecasts, warnings, and other services; and/or Tailoring weather products to meet the weather needs of various agencies.

OR 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree (coursework directly related to position being filled).

OR An appropriate combination of specialized experience and graduate level education (beyond what is required for a master's degree, i.e., more than 36 semester hours leading to a Ph.D.).

GS-12: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-11 level in the Federal service.

Specialized experience is defined as three or more of the following: Providing program oversight and guidance of the weather department at a Geographic Area Coordination Center (GACC) or similar field office; and/or Issuing fire weather forecasts and warnings for wildfires, prescribe burns, herbicide spraying, hazardous spills, pesticide spraying, wildland and wilderness management; and/or Assisting agency and National Weather Service personnel in the developing and providing training for fire management agency courses that included instruction of basic meteorology, weather observations, smoke management, forecasts, warnings, and other services; and/or Interpreting guidelines, policies, and large scale weather products to provide site specific and need specific data to any given incident or project.

TIME IN GRADE REQUIREMENT: If you are a current federal employee in the General Schedule (GS) pay plan and applying for a promotion opportunity, you must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirements of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled.

This requirement must be met by the closing date of this announcement. To receive consideration for this position, you must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of the announcement.

Major Duties:

• Duties listed are at the full performance GS-12 grade level.
• Issues smoke management forecasts and provides forecasts and briefings to the Federal, State, and local agencies that regulate burning in the State.
• Analyzes and integrates data from weather stations and networks spread across the state to issue final forecasts.
• Assists in the development and instruction of the weather portions of fire management agency courses, including instruction of basic meteorology, weather observations, smoke management, forecasts, warnings, and other services.
• Serves as a technical consultant to the fire agencies in the state to provide analysis of climatological data for use in fuel and timber management projects or spraying operations.
• Keeps abreast of developments and trends in the general field of meteorology and related science, as they relate to fire behavior, and forest management practices.
• Performs research at the meso and micro scale to improve the overall fire weather forecast product.
• Provides program development and guidance for future improvements to meet the needs of the customer.
• Prepares and issues general fire weather forecasts, land management forecasts, long range management planning forecasts and discussion, and site specific forecasts for wildland fires, prescribed fires, and other land management projects.
• Utilizes guidelines and large scale weather products to provide site specific and need specific data to any given incident or project.