Curtis Walker

Proj Scientist I

Information

Bio

Dr. Curtis Walker, A.M.ASCE is a Project Scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) as part of the Research Applications Laboratory (RAL) Weather Systems and Assessment Program (WSAP) specializing in research at the intersections of transportation, weather / climate, and artificial intelligence. He is also a Section Co-Lead for University Partnerships within NCAR Education, Engagement, and Early-Career Development (EdEC).

He is an Associate Member (A.M.) of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and an active member of the American Meteorological Society (AMS), Association of American Geographers (AAG), Intelligent Transportation Society of America (ITSA), Transportation Research Board (TRB), and American Geophysical Union (AGU) serving on several organizational committees.

Previously, he was an Advanced Study Program (ASP) Postdoctoral Fellow at NCAR. He completed his doctorate in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences with a Meteorology/Climatology specialization from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (2018). During his doctoral studies he was the recipient of the American Meteorological Society Graduate Fellowship Award sponsored by ITT Exelis and the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. Prior to his graduate studies he participated in the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) Significant Opportunities in Atmospheric Research and Science (SOARS) Program and has since returned “home” to Boulder, Colorado. As an African American research meteorologist, he wishes to inspire all, especially those underrepresented, to pursue their dreams and research passions keeping societal impacts and benefits at the forefront.

Publications

Research Publications (peer-reviewed):

Kadav, P. (doctoral candidate mentee), N. A. Goberville, K. Prins, A. Siems-Anderson, C. L. Walker, F. Motallebiaraghi, K. Carow, J. F. Rojas, G. Y. Hong, and Z. D. Asher, 2023: Road Snow Coverage Estimation Using Camera and Weather Infrastructure Sensor Inputs. SAE International Technical Paper 2023-01-0057, doi: 10.4271/2023-01-0057.

Goberville, N. A. (doctoral candidate mentee), K. R. Prins, P. Kadav, C. L. Walker, A. R. Siems-Anderson, and Z. D. Asher, 2023: Snow Coverage Estimation Using Camera Data for Automated Driving Applications. Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 18, doi: 10.1016/j.trip.2023.100766.

Chang, J. (high school student mentee), and C. L. Walker (corresponding author), 2022: Correlating Machine Learning Classification of Traffic Camera Images with Snow-Related Vehicular Crashes in New York State. Prevention and Treatment of Natural Disasters, 1 (2), doi: 10.54963/ptnd.v1i2.65.

Winters, A. C., and C. L. Walker, 2022: A Jet-Centered Framework for Investigating High Plains Winter Storm Severity. Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, 61, 709-728, doi: 10.1175/JAMC-D-21-0211.1.

Walker, C. L., B. Boyce, C. Albrecht, and A. Siems-Anderson, 2020: Will Weather Dampen Self-Driving Vehicles? Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 101, E1914-E1923, doi: 10.1175/BAMS-D-19-0035.1.

Siems-Anderson, A. R., C. L. Walker (corresponding author), G. Wiener, W. P. Mahoney III, and S. E. Haupt, 2019: An Adaptive Big Data Weather System for Surface Transportation. Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 3, doi: 10.1016/j.trip.2019.100071.

Walker, C. L., D. Steinkruger, P. Gholizadeh, S. Hasanzadeh, M. R. Anderson, and B. Esmaeili, 2019: Developing a Department of Transportation Winter Severity Index. Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, 58, 1779-1798, doi: 10.1175/JAMC-D-18-0240.1.

Gholizadeh, P., C. L. Walker, M. R. Anderson, and B. Esmaeili, 2019: Application of Unsupervised Machine Learning to Increase Safety and Mobility on Roadways after Snowstorms. 2019 International Conference on Computing in Civil Engineering, doi: 10.1061/9780784482445.045.

Dao, B., S. Hasanzadeh, C. L. Walker (corresponding author), D. Steinkruger, B. Esmaeili, and M. R. Anderson, 2019: Current practices of winter maintenance operations and perceptions of winter weather conditions. Cold Regions Engineering, 33 (3), doi: 10.1061/(ASCE)CR.1943-5495.0000191.

Walker, C. L., S. Hasanzadeh, B. Esmaeili, M. R. Anderson, and B. Dao, 2019: Developing A Winter Severity Index: A Critical Review. Cold Regions Science and Technology, 160, 139-149, doi: 10.1016/j.coldregions.2019.02.005.

Walker, C. L., and M. R. Anderson, 2016: Cloud impacts on pavement temperature and shortwave radiation. Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, 55, 2329-2347, doi: 10.1175/JAMC-D-16-0094.1.

Creighton, T. T., C. L. Walker, and M. R. Anderson, 2014: Coverage of Black versus White Males in Local Television News Lead Stories. Journal of Mass Communication and Journalism, 4, doi: 10.4172/2165-7912.1000216.

Walker, C. L., E. Potter, N. Esposito, and M. Godek, 2012: An Assessment of the Relationship between Air Mass Frequency and Extreme Drought in the Midwest United States. The Compass: Earth Science Journal of Sigma Gamma Epsilon, 84, Available at: http://digitalcommons.csbsju.edu/compass/vol84/iss2/5.

Non-Refereed Publications:

Morales, A., C. L. Walker, D. L. Carroll-Smith, and M. A. Burt, 2021: Code-switching and assimilation in STEM culture. American Geophysical Union, Eos, 102, doi: 10.1029/2021EO161232.

Villwock-Witte, N., C. L. Walker, L. Fay, S. Landolt, G. Wiener, and K. Clouser, 2021: Weather-Severity Indices – Key Issues and Potential Paths Forward. Aurora Program Report No. Aurora Project 2020-03. Available online at https://aurora-program.org/research/in-progress/ongoing-issues-with-winter-weather-severity-indices/.

Anderson, M. R., A. J. Khattak, M. U. Farooq, J. Cecava, and C. L. Walker, 2020: Investigation of Weather Conditions and Their Relationship to Crashes. Nebraska Department of Transportation Report No. SPR-21 (20) M097. Available online at https://dot.nebraska.gov/media/114448/investigation-of-weather.pdf.

Anderson, M. R., C. L. Walker, N. Barnhardt, N. Rick, and C. Wunderlin, 2020: Correlation Analysis of MDSS and NEWINS. Nebraska Department of Transportation Report No. M081. Available online at https://dot.nebraska.gov/media/113479/final_report-spr_p1-19-m081.pdf.

Walker, C. L., M. R. Anderson, and B. Esmaeili, 2018: Development of the Nebraska Department of Transportation Winter Severity Index. Nebraska Department of Transportation Report No. M054. Available online at https://dot.nebraska.gov/media/12698/final-report-m054.pdf.

Publications and Presentations (20)
Title	Source	Date
A jet-centered framework for investigating high plains winter storm severity	Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology	2022-06-01
Will weather dampen self-driving vehicles?	Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society	2020-11-01
Current practices of winter maintenance operations and perceptions of winter weather conditions	Journal of Cold Regions Engineering	2019-09-01
Developing a Department of Transportation winter severity index	Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology	2019-08-01
Developing a winter severity index: A critical review	Cold Regions Science and Technology	2019-04-01
The impact of cloud type on surface radiation and road pavement temperature [presentation 2]	93rd AMS Annual Meeting	2013-01-08
The impact of cloud type on surface radiation and road pavement temperature[presentation 1]	AGU Fall Meeting 2012	2012-12-03
The impact of cloud type on surface radiation and road pavement temperature [manuscript]	Unspecified	2012-08-01
The impact of cloud type on surface radiation and road pavement temperature	Unspecified	2012-08-01
Intelligent transportation systems to mitigate impacts of adverse weather conditions [manuscript]	Unspecified	2012-07-21
Intelligent transportation systems to mitigate impacts of adverse weather conditions [poster]	Unspecified	2012-07-21
Intelligent transportation systems to mitigate impacts of adverse weather conditions	Unspecified	2012-07-21
An analysis of the sensitivity of pavement temperature to the makeup of the road surface [poster]	Unspecified	2011-08-05
An analysis of the sensitivity of pavement temperature to the makeup of the road surface [presentation]	Unspecified	2011-08-05
An analysis of the sensitivity of pavement temperature to the makeup of the road surface [manuscript]	Unspecified	2011-08-05
An analysis of the sensitivity of pavement temperature to the makeup of the road surface	Unspecified	2011-08-05
Image processing algorithms to remove aerosols from solar coronal images [presentation]	Unspecified	2011-07-22
Image processing algorithms to remove aerosols from solar coronal images [poster]	Unspecified	2011-07-22
Image processing algorithms to remove aerosols from solar coronal images	Unspecified	2010-07-22
Image processing algorithms to remove aerosols from solar coronal images [manuscript]	Unspecified	2010-07-22