Joe worked at NASA for over two decades, providing programming support for principal investigators who are among the world leaders in atmospheric sciences, including Dr. Chris McKay, Dr. Brian Toon, and Dr. Carol Stoker. Some of Joe’s most engaging projects during his tenure at NASA were the Hubble Space Telescope design, the Kuiper Airborne Observatory (KAO), SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory for Infared Astronomy), the Mars Project at SETI, computational studies of the atmospheric microphysics involved in the stratospheric ozone depletion problem, as well as atmospheric modeling and mission flight support for ongoing investigations of global climate change. The Ozone Hole Research under Dr. Toon led to discovery of the “smoking gun” of ozone depletion and, ultimately, to the passage of the Montreal Protocol, considered by many to be the finest example of international cooperation in human history. Joe was honored to be included as a co-author of a number of papers with Dr. Toon on the chemistry of stratospheric ozone depletion.
Joe has always been interested in radio. He broadcast his own show, “Looking Sideways at Science” from the Oberlin College campus in the late 1960’s. Over the years, he has been a frequent guest on radio and TV. Joe has also contributed as a science writer to a number of science radio shows, including the “Field Notes” series on radio station KUSP-FM in Santa Cruz — a program about science, technology, public affairs, and everyday personal experiences of nature. He and the other members of the “Field Notes” production team were awarded the Peabody/Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Award for Excellence for a piece they wrote and produced, which was aired nationally on “The DNA Files”. The radio piece, (linked below) “Genetics & Astrobiology: Life: How to Make a Cosmic Omelet”, tells the story of microbes living in Yellowstone hot springs and their possibly close genetic connection to the earliest life forms on this planet. In 2011, Joe presented a TEDx talk in Santa Cruz. A selection of Joe’s media content is available here.