ALLEN JOEL HARRIS RÉSUMÉ
allenharris@rcn.com
EDUCATION
| Ph.D. |
Astronomy |
University of Pennsylvania |
| M.S. |
Astronomy |
University of Pennsylvania |
| B.S. |
Physics |
The Pennsylvania State University |
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
- Scientific Applications
Software Development
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BACKGROUND
1999-present GE Panametrics, Waltham, MA, Senior Physicist/Consultant
- Calibrated spacecraft instrument sensors, filters, and gratings
- Designed vacuum systems
- Performed mechanical analysis - stress, strain, vibration, and center of mass calculations for
spacecraft instruments
- Analyzed requirements for cleanroom and contamination control
- Generated documents required by customer for instruments (Solar x-ray telescope, extreme
ultraviolet telescope, high energy proton and alpha detectors, and energetic particle sensors)
on the Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES)
- Analysed the response of visible light measurements of the sun to an extreme ultraviolet
telescope
- Helped in the analysis of the response of an extreme ultraviolet telescope to ultraviolet
measurements made at the National Synchrotron Light Source.
1998 - 1999 Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics/modis, Inc., Cambridge, MA -
Astronomer/Software Engineer
- Developed Datamodel API for use by data reduction and analysis software for the Chandra X-ray Observatory
- Modified ROSAT Visual Inspection software in IDL for validation and verification of data
from the Chandra X-ray Observatory
1998 Titan Eldyne, Inc., Westborough, MA - Principal Systems Engineer
- Took specification documentation and wrote test plans and test procedures to test the Digital
Airport Surveillance Radar (DASR) at on-site location
1997 GTE/TAD Resources International, Needham, MA - Software Engineer
- Software Engineering for enhancement of National Security Agency's Electronic Key
Management System
- Took requirements specifications and wrote software specifications, designed software, and
coded in Pascal and Ingres
1996 MIT Lincoln Laboratory/Minuteman Technical Services, Lexington, MA - Analyst
- Developed algorithms in IDL and C on SGI platforms to emulate infrared seeker image data
and developed analysis tools to evaluate seeker processing performance for the Seeker
Experimental System.
1996 Alden Electronics/HL Yoh, Inc., Westborough, MA - programmer/consultant
- Developed X-Windows/Motif GUI interface for NCAR Weather Program using C on UNIX
based PC's
1996 Epsilon/Oxford & Associates, Burlington, MA - Programmer
- Helped staff use a more modern version of Fortran than they had been using on IBM
mainframes for their Fundraising and Membership Services Division
1995 - 1996 University of MA at Lowell/Volpe National Transportation Service Center,
Cambridge, MA - Programmer
- Worked on software which keeps track of all of the airplanes in the sky over the United States
- ETMS
- Ported software from Pascal on Apollo Domain/Aegis operating system to C on OSF Unix
operating system
1995 Laboratory for Nuclear Science at MIT/GCR Professional Services, Cambridge, MA -
Programmer
- Converted DEC VAX based PL/I financial code to pseudo code in preparation of conversion
of conversion to Oracle.
- Required understanding of logic code and tracing of code using DEC Symbolic Debugger
1994 - 1995 A.S. Thomas, Inc., Westwood, MA - Software Developer - Software Council
Fellowship Program
- Ported Computer Aided Manufacturing/Computer Aided Design applications from PHIGS
graphics and MOTIF to OpenGL and MOTIF and from DEC VAX and ALPHA platforms to
Silicon Graphics, Inc. platforms
- Developed animated three dimensional shaded models
1992 - 1996 Hytex Engineering Inc., Burlington, MA - Business Development Manager
- Started branch office in Massachusetts to secure small disadvantaged and woman owned
business (8(a)) set asides from the federal government
1992 - 1993 Massachusetts Bay Community College, Wellesley, MA - Adjunct Faculty
- Taught several Computer Science courses - Computer Literacy, Computer Architecture
1989 - 1990 MIT Lincoln Laboratory/Micro Temps Systems & Programming, Lexington,
MA - Scientist
- Developed software and analyzed data from the Visual/Ultraviolet Experiment (VUE) on a
Defense Satellite Program satellite
- Analysis included astrometry, orbital mechanics, image processing, graphics, and statistics
- Programmed on a Silicon Graphics 4D Unix Workstation. Developed a tool to display images
of individual frames and movies of a set of frames and display cross-sections.
- Used tool to evaluate statistics and photometry on the data
- Developed a tool to determine the pointing of the satellite and show the frames and features
against a stellar background from the Space Telescope Guide Star Catalog
- Used the NOAO IRAF (Image Reduction and Analysis Facility) system in the analysis of this
data
1989 Bunker Hill Community College, Charlestown, MA - Instructor
- Taught courses in Micro Operating Systems and the Pascal programming language
1987 - 1988 Defense Group Incorporated, Burlington, MA - Senior Research Analyst
- Developed models and methodology for the detection and tracking of submarines by
non-acoustic means and evaluated the methodology for the fusion of observations from diverse
sensors and platforms
1986 - 1987 TITAN Systems, Woburn, MA - Senior Scientist
- Developed programming and graphics capability on the Convergent Technology AWS
workstation
- Using a CT AWS and a DEC VAX, performed simulation and analysis of ballistic missile
trajectories
- Developed software tools for the NEXRAD (Next Generation Weather Radar) system
- In charge of all computer related matters in local office including sizing of computational
services and hardware
1979 - 1986 Science Applications International Corp., Bedford, MA - Senior Scientist
- Did research on the utility of the Moon and on the problem of man-made debris in earth orbit
- Did programming and evaluated results from a C3I network survivability simulation system
using a VAX with a Tektronix 4107 raster graphics terminal
- Performed software engineering of Operability Assessment testing software and Calibration
Processing software for the upgraded PAVE PAWS and BMEWS Phased Array Radar
Surveillance Systems
- Developed applications programs and graphics for track analysis of orbital contact studies,
space object identification, and radar signature analysis
- Systems programming for maximum utilization of the available computers
- Performed sensor network coverage analysis and evaluated contact statistics for the Advanced
Sensor Demonstration Program
- Performed parametric trade-off analysis of various telescope designs for the GEODSS
(Ground Based Electro-optical Deep Space Surveillance System) study
- Developed software to analyze the history of satellite launches and the historical performance
of the Spacetrack network
- Supported internal studies and proposals on the Space Telescope Science Institute, Space
Telescope Science Operations Ground System and participated in the analysis of the Space
Telescope End-to-End Study
- Responsible for overall computer policy in Bedford Office and supervised and instructed junior
and part time programmers
1983 - 1984 Ford Aerospace & Communications Corp., Lexington, MA - Senior Analyst
- Provided programming support for theoretical calculations related to high energy laser beam
control and propagation
- The calculations were for adaptive optics, atmospheric propagation, Strehl ratio, and
isoplanatism.
- Utilized the MACSYMA programming language for some of the calculations
1972 - 1979 American Science & Engineering, Cambridge, MA - Senior Scientific Programmer
and Astronomer
- Worked on applications programming for AS&E's Skylab Apollo Telescope Mount Solar
X-ray Telescope project including: telemetry reduction, aspect determination and analysis,
microdensitometry, calibration, density to energy, energy to temperature, large scale database
cataloging of the 36,000 solar x-ray photographs at various stages of the processing, image
processing and filtering in both the spatial and the frequency domains, and deconvolutions. Out
of a staff of five, developed about 75% of system.
- In the last two years had complete responsibility for the maintenance and modifications of the
solar x-ray data processing and analysis system
- Interacted with and instructed users of the system and users of the computers
- Did system engineering for the International Solar Polar Mission. Provided programming
support for an x-ray microscope diagnostic tool for the M.I.T. Alcator tokamak
1971 - 1972 Aero Service Corporation, Division of Litton Industries, Philadelphia, PA -
Scientific Programmer
- Responsible for programming of aerial geophysical exploration applications which included
cartography and geodetic coordinates, TORAN, ANA, and SHORAN navigation systems,
digitizer reduction, determination of geosynclines from magnetic anomalies, and flatbed and
incremental plotting
1966 - 1970 New Mexico State University, University Park, NM - Assistant Professor of
Astronomy
- Taught the following undergraduate and graduate astronomy and astrophysics courses: Solar
System Astronomy, Stellar Astronomy, Spherical Astronomy, Binary Stars, Celestial
Mechanics, Stellar Interiors, and Introductory Astrophysics
- Member of the library committee of university senate; responsible for astronomical library
acquisitions and observatory publication exchange; and was the editor of the observatory
publication, Contributions of the Observatory, New Mexico State University
- Worked on photoelectric photometry and spectroscopy of eclipsing binary systems and
computational methodology for the determination of orbital elements of eclipsing binary
systems
Summers of 1967 and 1968 University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX - National Science
Foundation Summer Postdoctoral Research Participant
- Analyzed spectrophotometric scans of selected galaxies observed at McDonald Observatory;
equivalent widths of composite spectral lines were derived and used in the analysis of the
stellar content of these galaxies. A self-starting least squares differential correction technique
was developed to facilitate this analysis.
1962 - 1966 University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA - Observing Assistant and Teaching
Assistant
- Did photoelectric photometry of eclipsing binary stars and developed a system of computer
programs for the reduction and analysis of eclipsing binary systems
- Curator of the bibliographic card catalog of eclipsing binary systems
- Teaching assistant in general astronomy course
Summer 1963 National Radio Astronomy Observatory, Green Bank, WV - Research Assistant
- Compiled and reduced 21 cm H I observations made using the 300-foot transit telescope and a
90-channel radio spectrograph
- Assisted in the design of the twin 85-foot radio interferometer