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Participant
Interview:
ENS
Cathy Martin
NOAA Corps Junior Officer
Cathy is a Junior Officer
with the NOAA fleet. She was nice enough to sit down with us for a few
minutes and answer some of our questions. Cathy has a Bachelor of Science
in Aviation Management and a Bachelor of Science in Meteorology, both
from Florida Institute of Technology. In order to join the officers program
for NOAA, an individual must have a bachelor's degree in science, math
or engineering. She joined NOAA in April of 2000 after interning with
the National Weather Service. Cathy is part of the NOAA training program.
She spent 3 months at the Merchant Marine Academy and will spend two years
at sea training under the Captains of various NOAA vessels. After her
training at sea, Cathy hopes to become a pilot for NOAA, chasing hurricanes.
Cathy's daily schedule
varies from trip to trip. On Leg 3 of the VENTS program, Cathy stands
watch on the bridge from 12:00 until 4:00, twice a day. While on watch
she is responsible for maneuvering the vessel, maintaining weather logs,
monitoring radar for other vessels and coordinating the deployment and
recovery of scientific equipment. During her eight hours between watches,
Cathy has several other jobs she must complete, including public relations
and assistant navigator. She also tries to catch a movie, talk with friends
and family via email and get some sleep.
When not at sea, Cathy
likes to spend time with her fellow officers, visits friends back home
in Massachusetts and just sit down at a nice restaurant for a good dinner.
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Cathy at the controls on
the bridge.
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