Scientific Software Engineer - Meteorological Decoders for Observation Processing and Integration
About The Position
Lynker is seeking a highly skilled Scientific Software Engineer to support the NOAA/NWS Office of Modeling and Development by managing, developing, and optimizing meteorological data decoder systems. The role focuses on converting native-format meteorological observations into standardized formats used by downstream numerical weather prediction (NWP) systems. The engineer develops and maintains C and Fortran decoders, translates non-standard data formats into BUFR and JEDI IODA netCDF, and manages the data streams and storage that support ingestion. The position also involves monitoring operational data ingestion, maintaining decoder software repositories, integrating new observation types into the BUFR pipeline, and supporting the GEODE project to modernize legacy decoder frameworks. The engineer reports task progress, system performance, and project risks to the Lead Scientist and federal oversight managers. Lynker is an employee-owned professional, scientific, and technical services company. It offers a team-oriented work environment focused on scientific expertise, sound science, and creative solutions.
Requirements
- Advanced skills and knowledge of Fortran and C programming for data parsing and processing.
- Deep understanding of BUFR, including table-driven descriptors and binary extraction logic.
- Experience working in a UNIX/Linux environment with advanced shell scripting languages.
- Demonstrated knowledge of meteorological data servers and distribution networks, including LDM, DBNet, GTS, and WIS2.
- Knowledge of High-Performance Computing (HPC) file systems and job schedulers, such as the WCOSS environment, MPI, Slurm, and LSF.
- Knowledge of modern software development practices and version control, particularly Git, GitHub, and Gitflow.
- Ability to perform complex, mission-critical debugging in a fast-paced operational environment.
Nice To Haves
- Knowledge of global data assimilation systems and observation networks.
- Experience transitioning legacy meteorological codebases into cloud environments.
- Background in atmospheric physics or earth system modeling.
Responsibilities
- Develop, maintain, and optimize C and Fortran programs used to decode raw meteorological bulletins.
- Translate non-standard native data formats into BUFR and JEDI IODA netCDF by engineering specialized decoder logic.
- Manage input and output streams for ingest data queues, descriptor lists, and temporary BUFR message storage to support efficient data flow.
- Monitor and troubleshoot operational data ingestion across meteorological data servers and distribution networks, including LDM, DBNet, GTS, and WIS2.
- Optimize decoded data tanks for rapid assimilation into the NCEP NWP system.
- Manage and maintain software repositories for legacy and operational decoder processing.
- Coordinate with upstream data originators and downstream NCO Operations users to integrate new observational data types into the BUFR pipeline.
- Report software task progress, system performance metrics, and project risks to the Lead Scientist and federal oversight managers.
- Participate in the Modernization of Observation Infrastructure project (GEODE) to transition legacy decoder frameworks to modern architectures.
Benefits
- Comprehensive healthcare for the employee at no monthly cost, including medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision coverage.
- Personal Time Off (PTO) and paid holidays.
- Competitive compensation plan regularly calibrated against industry and location benchmarks.
- 401(k) retirement plan with company matching.
- Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP).
- Flexible spending accounts.
- Employee assistance program (EAP).
- Short- and long-term disability insurance.
- Life and accident insurance.
- Tuition assistance, training, and workforce improvement reimbursement per year.
- Spot bonuses for exceptional performance.
- Annual Employee Recognition Awards with bonuses.
- Employee Referral Program.
- Free centralized, self-directed Learning Management System.
- Personalized career growth plans for every employee.
- Team-oriented work environment.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Education Level
No Education Listed
