Bill Murtagh currently serves as the Program Coordinator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space Weather Prediction Center (SWPC) in Boulder, Colorado. In November 2016, he completed a 26-month assignment in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) as the Assistant Director for Space Weather, Energy and Environment Division. In his position at OSTP he oversaw the development and implementation of the National Space Weather Strategy and Action Plan.
Bill is NOAA’s space weather lead in coordinating preparedness and response efforts with industry, emergency managers, and government officials around the world. He regularly briefs the White House, Congress, and other government leadership on vulnerabilities of critical infrastructure to space weather storms. Bill is also a key contributor in U.S. government efforts to advance international cooperation in space weather-related activities.
He is a regular guest speaker at universities, government agencies, and national and international conferences. He has provided numerous interviews to major media outlets and is featured in several documentaries on space weather.
Before joining NOAA, Bill was a weather forecaster in the United States Air Force. He coordinated and provided meteorological support for national security interests around the world. Bill transferred to the SWPC in 1997 as a space weather forecaster and liaison between NOAA and the U.S. Air Force. He joined NOAA in 2003 after retiring from the Air Force with 23 years of military service.