JSU Meteorology
John Shoemake
 Assistant Researcher
Meteorology Program
RoomN0: 257

During January of 2002, John L. Shoemake joined the staff of the Jackson State University Meteorology Program as a Meteorology Lab Assistant. A retired Naval Aerology Officer with over twenty-six years weather forecasting and observing experience, he has served overseas tours of duty as a weather forecaster in Alaska, Iceland and Guam and in the continental united states locations of Norfolk, Va., New Orleans, La., and Meridian, MS. He is a former sea Ice Analyst/Forecaster with the Naval Polar Center, Typhoon Duty Officer with the Joint Typhoon Warning Center and War Gaming Environmental Forecaster/Briefer with the Joint Forces Staff College. He is a former Naval Weather Service Officer-in-Charge aboard Naval Air Station, Oceana, Va. And Naval Air Station, Meridian, MS. Mr. Shoemake has personally, conducted surface, upper air and in-flight weather observations from the Polar Regions to the Tropics and has accumulated over 2,000 technical observational flight hours in support of naval artic operations.

Prior to his military retirement in October of 1993, Mr. Shoemake was the Training Development Branch Head for the Naval Oceanographic Office. There his duties included meteorological/oceanographic training curriculum development for navy and marine enlisted weather schools; new equipment acquisitions, equipment operator and tactical application software training; and inter-governmental agency training liaison for the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command. It was in this position that he served as Department of Defense representative to the office of the Federal Coordinator Meteorology and Supporting Research (OFCM) "Working Group for Upper Air Observations". He also, researched and recommended automated weather equipment for procurement for United States Forces deployed during "Operation Desert Storm"..

Mr. Shoemake's previous civilian employment has been as Meteorologist/ Oceanographer with Gulf Weather Corporation and as Senior Weather Observer with Team One, Inc. With Gulf Weather, he developed contract proposals for meteorological/ oceanographic naval tactical support, developed applications software training and provided this training to over forty naval afloat and overseas units worldwide. During his five years with Team One, Mr. Shoemake was responsible for the manual weather service observation program at the McComb-Pike County, Ms. Airport. There, he and his fellow observers maintained a National Weather Service "Highly Satisfactory" rating despite an 80 per cent turnover in personnel.

Mr. Shoemake earned a Bachelor's External Degree in Geology from the University of the State of New York in 1977. He previously attended Mississippi State University, the University of Tennessee and the University of New Orleans. He is a graduate of numerous technical training courses including the following: Naval Weather Observer Course, Naval Rawin/Radiosonde Operator/Analysis Course, Naval Environmental Analysis/Forecaster Course, Naval Instructor Training Course, USAF Tropical Weather Analysis & Forecast Course, and the Weather Surveillance Doppler Radar Operator/ Manager Course of the National Weather Service.

Mr. Shoemake is the author of numerous naval technical articles and has provided original rough drafts for various portions of three OFCM Handbooks or other publications. Areas of note include upper air observation procedures, basic tropical weather analysis and forecasting, in flight weather and oceanographic observational procedures, weather satellite interpretation techniques, and operational weather analysis and forecasting techniques.