Sciences and Exploration Directorate

Alicia T Joseph

(RSCH AST, EARTH SCIENCES REMOTE SENS)

Alicia T Joseph's Contact Card & Information.
Email: alicia.t.joseph@nasa.gov
Phone: 301.614.5804
Org Code: 617
Address:
NASA/GSFC
Mail Code 617
Greenbelt, MD 20771
Employer:
NASA

Brief Bio


Dr. Alicia Joseph received her BS degree in Environmental Science from Medgar Evers College of the CUNY in 1997. She has MS degrees in environmental and Occupational health science from Hunter College, and geography and environmental engineering from the Johns Hopkins University. Alicia completed her PhD in 2010 at the University of Maryland, College Park; her research topic was “Analysis of the microwave optical depth using physical and semi-empirical emission models”. Her work in the area of microwave remote sensing of soil moisture retrieval takes her on experiments/conferences worldwide.

Research Interests


Microwave Remote Sensing of Soil Moisture

Earth Science: Remote Sensing

• Microwave Remote Sensing of Soil Moisture (Active/Passive)
• Basic and applied research in hydrology, sustainability of water resources and water resources
• Hydrologic modeling
• Global change and water resources

Positions/Employment


Physical Scientist

National Aeronautics and Space Administration Goddard Space Flight Center Hydrological Sciences Laboratory, Mail Code 617.0 - Greenbelt, Maryland

November 2001 - Present

Primary Duties: Working on several ongoing projects. Responsibilities include research, analysis, presentation and publication in the area of microwave remote sensing of soil moisture. Participating in algorithm development and calibration and validation activities for present and future satellite soil moisture missions (e.g. SMOS, SMAP, and Aquarius). Writing proposals to provide research funds in the area of microwave remote sensing theory. Communicating information collected and scientific results to community and colleagues.


Adjunct Professor

Medgar Evers College of the City, University of New York - Brooklyn, New York

February 1999 - February 2000

Primary Duties: Preparing lecture notes and presenting lecture in the area of Environmental Waste Management and Environmental Law. Preparing, distributing and grading assignments and examinations in these topics. Planning and organizing “hands on” trip to a waste water facility or facility that manages environmental waste in preparing students for careers in Environmental Waste Management. Providing quality education and career guidance while motivating students.


Activity Coordinator N.Y.C. - Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation

Medgar Evers College of the City, University of New York - Brooklyn, New York

February 1998 - February 2000

Primary Duties: Interviewing, selecting and matching students and faculty in relation to research projects. Responsible for preparing, completing, and maintaining records and reports for evaluation and statistical purposes. Conducting student follow-up to track student academic and career progress until post graduation. Administrative duties include preparing time sheets, payment request and personnel action forms for students and faculty.


Classroom Teacher (Science/Computers/French)

The Johnson Preparatory School - Brooklyn, New York

September 1989 - June 1999

Primary Duties: Teaching science, computer use and French language. Preparing and teaching classroom lessons; planning and implementing field activities; providing career guidance to students as needed; grading homework; and ensuring quality education while encouraging student participation and growth.


Office Associate

New York City Board of Education - Technology Solutions Dept. - New York, New York

November 1993 - February 1995

Primary Duties: Responsibilities included reviewing and analyzing various software programs acquired by the dept. Determined the different grades for which the software can be used. Assisted in purchasing of software programs to help develop student skills in Math, Reading and Writing within an established budget. Received and updated schedules of Adaptive Technology Centers Coordinators (ATCCs) for each borough. Submitted expense and time sheets of ATCCs based on work actually performed to the Finance Dept. for payment.


Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) for American Indian and Alaska Native Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Engagement Project Activity Manager

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center - Greenbelt, MD

December 2018 - Present

Manage all MAIANSE activities to increase American Indian and Alaska Native engagement in STEM through authentic and unique NASA experiences.


Activity Manager

NASA Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) for American Indian and Alaska Native Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Engagement (MAIANSE) - Greenbelt, MD

December 2018 - Present

NASA's MAIANSE Activity seeks to increase American Indian and Alaska Native engagement in STEM through authentic and unique NASA experiences.

Teaching Experience


Dr. Alicia Joseph taught undergraduate Environmental Waste Management and Environmental Law as an Adjunt Professor at Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York. Dr. Joseph also taught Science, Computers and French at The Johnson Preparatory School in Brooklyn, NY. Dr. Joseph is also a board member of three charter schools in Maryland, Chesapeake Lighthouse Foundation.

Education


02/05 – 12/10 University of Maryland
College Park, Maryland
PhD Geography
Dissertation: Modeling L-Band Emission from Soil-Vegetation System

02/02 – 05/2004 The Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, Maryland
M.S. Geography and Environmental Engineering

02/98 - 02/2000 Hunter College of the City University of New York
New York, New York
M.S. Degree in Environmental and Occupational Health Science

06/95 - 12/97 Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York
Brooklyn, New York
B.S. Degree in Environmental Science
Minor: Accounting

Professional Societies


(AGU) American Geophysical Union

2014 - Present


(IEEE) Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

2014 - Present


(AMS) American Meteorological Society

2014 - Present


(AMS) American Meteorological Society

2014 - Present


(AIHA) American Industrial Hygienist Association

2014 - Present

Awards


  • In 2015 Dr. Alicia Josephreceived the Agency Honor Award for the Outstanding Leadership Medal
  • In 2014 Dr. Joseph received the 2014 Distinguished Alumni Award from Medgar Ever College of the City University of New York.
  • In 2012 Dr. Joseph received a NASA Earth Sciences HOBI award for outstanding scientific achievement.
  • In October of 2007 Alicia Joseph was honored at the 7th Annual Medgar Evers College Legacy Awards.
  • In 2007 Alicia Joseph was a recipient of the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education Distinguished Alumni Awards.

 

Other Professional Information


• State of Maryland Commercial Drivers License
• 40 hour Lead Inspector and Supervisor certificate
• 40 Hazwoper training certificate

Special Experience


CALIBRATION AND VALIDATION EXPERIMENTS:
 

• Soil Moisture Active/Passive Validation Experiment 2016 (SMAPVEX16), Winnipeg, Canada (June/July 2016)
• Australian Soil Moisture Active/Passive Experiment (SMAPEx-5), Leeton, Australia, (September 2015)
• Scanning L-band Active Passive Validation Experiment (SLAPVEx13), Maryland (October 2013)
• NASA/CONAE Saocom Experiment, Bell Ville, Argentina (March 2013)
• Soil Moisture Active/Passive Validation Experiment 2012 (SMAPVEX12), Winnipeg, Canada (June – July 2012)
• Australian Soil Moisture Active/Passive Experiment, Leeton, Australia (July 2010 and September 2011)
• Canadian Soil Moisture Active/Passive Experiment (CanEx), Saskatoon, Canada (June 2010)
• Soil Moisture Active/Passive Validation Experiment (SMAPVEX), Maryland (October 2008)
• Cloud and Land Surface Interaction Campaign (CLASIC), Oklahoma (June 2007)
• Combined Radar/Radiometer Experiment (ComRad), Maryland (2006 – 2014)
• Soil Moisture Experiments in 2005 (SMEX05), Iowa (June 2005)
• Soil Moisture Experiments in 2004 (SMEX04), Arizona (July 2004)
• Soil Moisture Experiments in 2003 (SMEX03), Brazil (November 2003)
• Soil Moisture Experiments in 2003 (SMEX03), Oklahoma (July 2003)
• NASA Cold Land Processes Field Experiment, Colorado (June 2003)
• NASA Cold Land Processes Field Experiment, Colorado (September 2002)
• Optimizing Production Inputs for Economic and Environmental Enhancement (OPE3), Maryland (2002)

Publications


Refereed

2018. "SCoBi-Veg: A Generalized Bistatic Scattering Model of Reflectometry from Vegetation for Signals of Opportunity Applications." IEEE Transactions on Geocience and Remote Sensing (99): 1-20 [10.1109/TGRS.2018.2864631] [Journal Article/Letter]

2016. "Multi-frequency investigation into scattering from vegetation over the growth cycle." 2016 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium (IGARSS) [10.1109/igarss.2016.7730386] [Proceedings]

2015. "Evaluation of dielectric mixing models for microwave soil moisture retrieval using data from the Combined Radar / Radiometer (ComRAD) ground-based SMAP simulator." IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing (JSTARS) 8 (9): 4345-4354 [10.1109/JSTARS.2014.2372031] [Journal Article/Letter]

2012. "Impact of Conifer Forest Litter on Microwave Emission at L-Band." IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sensing 50 (4): 1071-1084 [10.1109/TGRS.2011.2166272] [Journal Article/Letter]

2012. "Effective tree scattering and opacity at L-band." Remote Sensing of Environment 118 1-9 [10.1016/j.rse.2011.10.024] [Journal Article/Letter]

2012. "Technical Note: Calibration and validation of geophysical observation models." Biogeosciences 9 (6): 2195–2201 [10.5194/bg-9-2195-2012] [Journal Article/Letter]

2011. "“A First-Order Radiative Transfer Model for Microwave Radiometry of Forest Canopies at L-band”." IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing 49 (9): 3167-3179 [10.1109/TGRS.2010.2091139] [Journal Article/Letter]

2011. "A First-Order Radiative Transfer Model for Microwave Radiometry of Forest Canopies at L-Band." IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sensing 49 (9): 3167-3179 [10.1109/TGRS.2010.2091139] [Journal Article/Letter]

2010. "L Band Brightness Temperature Observations over a Corn Canopy during the Entire Growth Cycle." Sensors 10 (7): 6980-7001 [10.3390/s100706980] [Journal Article/Letter]

2010. "Effects of corn on C- and L-band radar backscatter: A correction method for soil moisture retrieval." Remote Sensing of Environment 114 (11): 2417-2430 [10.1016/j.rse.2010.05.017] [Journal Article/Letter]

2009. "L-Band Radar Estimation of Forest Attenuation for Active/Passive Soil Moisture Inversion." IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sensing 47 (9): 3026-3040 [10.1109/TGRS.2009.2026641] [Journal Article/Letter]

2008. "Soil Moisture Retrieval During a Corn Growth Cycle Using L-Band (1.6 GHz) Radar Observations." IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sensing 46 (8): 2365-2374 [10.1109/TGRS.2008.917214] [Journal Article/Letter]

2007. "Microwave Soil Moisture Estimation Through Tree Canopies Using an L Band Active/Passive System." Proc of URSI [Article in Book]

Non-Refereed

2016. "Development of VHF (240–270 MHz) antennas for SoOp (signal of opportunity) receiver for 6U Cubesat platforms." 2016 Progress in Electromagnetic Research Symposium (PIERS) 2530-2531 [10.1109/piers.2016.7735037] [Proceedings]

2015. "Evaluation of radar vegetation indices for vegetation water content estimation using data from a ground-based SMAP simulator." 2015 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium (IGARSS) [10.1109/igarss.2015.7326012] [Proceedings]

2014. "Seasonal parameterizations of the tau-omega model using the ComRAD ground-based SMAP simulator." Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium (IGARSS), 2014 IEEE International 2423-2426 [10.1109/IGARSS.2014.6946961] [Proceedings]

2009. "Microwave soil moisture retrieval under trees using a modified tau-omega model." 2009 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium 3 III-290 - III-293 [10.1109/IGARSS.2009.5417757] [Other]

2008. "Microwave Soil Moisture Retrieval Under Trees." IGARSS 2008 - 2008 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium 1 I-37 - I-40 [10.1109/IGARSS.2008.4778786] [Other]

2008. "Forest Canopy Effects on the Estimation of Soil Moisture at L-Band." Proc IGARSS [Other]

2008. "Estimation of Canopy Attenuation for Active/Passive Microwave Soil Moisture Retrievals." Proc 10th MicroRad [Other]

2007. "ComRAD Active/Passive Microwave Measurements of Tree Canopies." Proc IGARSS 1420 - 1423 [10.1109/IGARSS.2007.4423073] [Proceedings]