Name: Zdenka Smith

Q: Where in NOAA do you work now?
A: NOAA/SEC

Q: When did you begin your work with NOAA?
A: When ESSA became NOAA: in the Space Disturbances Laboratory: in Boulder CO.

Q: Looking back, what events stand out as the most memorable during your time with NOAA?
A: For me, these have involved the changes in my own Lab/Center, our highs and lows; whether we were, or were not, useful to NOAA; the final approval by Congress of the funds to build the NOAA building was a high (this had been talked of ever since I came in 1970!) Then the long time it took to actual get all approvals was not-so good. The smoothness of the move from one building to another was impressive, as are the communications facilities, the networks, here.

Q: From your point of view, what have been the most significant changes NOAA has experienced during the past 30 years?
A: 
1) Scientific: The growth in understanding and acceptance of the influence of the Sun has on the Earth, via the Interplanetary medium. This has been aided by a) the advance of computers (only main frames in early days, though we had programing staff to help then, no individual computers, but slide-rules, log tables: hand calculators were EXPENSIVE!), (b) the advances in data, primarily from spacebourne instruments, starting with the Pioneer satelites (which I worked on at NASA before joining ESSA: Pn 10,11 (together with Voyagers) went off to deep space to increase our knowledge of interplanetary medium beyond Earth. Recently Ulysees gave us out-of-the-ecliptic measurements, and SOHO of course for solar details! and c) the advance in communications (answering machines, cell phones, e-mail, web...., when did view-graphs arrive? my early recollections are of giving presentations with blackboards and slides only)

2) Social: And work-place attitudes: e.g. the advances of women in Science and the social views on working mothers. When I was pregnant with my first child, I suspect the rules suggested/stated that pregnant women take leave from early pregnancy. No day care centers and no 'family leave'... (But I was lucky; working part time with very understanding supervisors/ coworkers).

This page updated on: Monday, 07-Jan-2002 21:41:59 GMT
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