National Weather Service announces new Eastern Region director

“Jason has spent his career moving technologies from research to development and turning them into products we use every day to make our forecasts more accurate and timely,” said National Weather Service Acting Director Laura Furgione. “His leadership and operational expertise will be an asset to the region and enable the National Weather Service to be even more responsive to our customers.”

Jason Tuell, Ph.D., chief of the Meteorological Services Division of NOAA’s National Weather Service has been named director of the National Weather Service Eastern Region. He started his new assignment on December 30, 2012.

Tuell’s interest in meteorology was sparked as a child growing up in Rhode Island and he transferred this interest into a career. He is well known in the agency, having worked at headquarters for more than 10 years in a variety of roles. As chief of the Meteorological Services Division he played a key role in improving operations and services for fire weather, aviation, marine, tsunami and coastal services. Recently, Tuell helped to develop the agency’s strategic plan, as well as revive the National Weather Service Operations Center.

Throughout his weather service career, he supported many projects including the Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System (AWIPS), Next Generation Weather Radar (NEXRAD), and Automated Surface Observing System (ASOS). He was also engaged in research and development activities to forecast water in rivers and streams, including efforts to improve flood warnings.

Before joining the National Weather Service, Tuell was a senior program manager for Litton PRC in McLean, Virginia. He retired from the United States Air Force in 1997 after 16 years of service.

“I am excited to have the opportunity to lead the Eastern Region; this part of the country played an important role in shaping my life and career,” said Tuell. “I look forward to using my understanding of the local weather, climate and rivers to support weather service operations and serve the people living in the region.”

Tuell holds a Bachelor of Science degree in physics from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Massachusetts and a Doctor of Philosophy in atmospheric sciences from Georgia Institute of Technology.

The National Weather Service Eastern Region includes 23 weather forecast offices, three river forecast centers and four center weather service units, which provide detailed aviation forecasts and hazardous weather advisories to the Federal Aviation Administration. The regional headquarters is located in Bohemia, New York, on central Long Island.

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