[Hiring] Scientific Software Engineer @Lynker Corporation

Role Description

Lynker is seeking a highly skilled Software Engineer to support the NOAA/NWS Office of Modeling and Development by managing, developing, and optimizing the meteorological data decoder systems. This role focuses on the critical pipeline that converts diverse, native-format meteorological observations into standardized formats required for downstream numerical weather prediction (NWP) systems.

Responsibilities

• Technical Operations & R&D
  • Develop, maintain, and optimize C and Fortran programs used to decode raw meteorological bulletins.
  • Translate non-standard native data formats into BUFR and JEDI IODA netcdf by engineering specialized decoder logic.
  • Ensure uninterrupted, efficient data flow by managing input and output streams for ingest data queues, descriptor lists, and temporary BUFR message storage.
• Systems & Data Integration
  • Monitor and troubleshoot operational data ingestion across major meteorological data servers, including LDM, DBNet, GTS, and WIS2.
  • Ensure decoded data tanks are optimized for rapid assimilation into the NCEP NWP system, supporting the generation of thousands of daily weather products.
  • Manage and maintain the software repositories pertaining to legacy and operational decoder processing.
• Coordination & Reporting
  • Liaise with upstream data originators and downstream NCO Operations users to seamlessly integrate new observational data types into the BUFR pipeline.
  • Report on software task progress, system performance metrics, and project risks to the Lead Scientist and Federal oversight managers.
  • Participate in the Modernization of Observation Infrastructure project (GEODE) to transition legacy decoder frameworks to modern architectures.

Qualifications

• Advanced skills and knowledge of Fortran and C programming languages specifically tailored for data parsing and processing.
• Deep understanding of BUFR (Binary Universal Form for the Representation of meteorological data), including table-driven descriptors and binary extraction logic.
• Experience working in a UNIX/Linux environment with advanced shell scripting languages.
• Demonstrated knowledge of meteorological data servers and distribution networks (LDM, DBNet, GTS, WIS2).
• Skills and knowledge of High-Performance Computing (HPC) file systems and job schedulers (e.g., WCOSS environment, MPI, Slurm, LSF).
• Knowledge of modern software development practices and version control software, particularly Git/GitHub/Gitflow.
• Ability to perform complex, mission-critical debugging in a fast-paced, operational environment.
• Additional desirable experiences and skills include:
  • Knowledge of global Data Assimilation (DA) systems and observation networks.
  • Experience transitioning legacy meteorological codebases into Cloud environments.
  • Background in atmospheric physics or earth system modeling.

Benefits

• Comprehensive healthcare for the employee at no monthly cost.
• Healthcare benefit covers medical, prescription drug, dental, and vision.
• Personal Time Off (PTO) Policy plus paid holidays.
• Highly competitive compensation plan regularly calibrated against industry and location benchmarks.
• 401(k) retirement plan with company-matching.
• Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) – we're all company owners!
• Flexible spending accounts.
• Employee assistance program (EAP).
• Short- and long-term disability insurance.
• Life and accident insurance.
• Tuition assistance/Training/Workforce improvement reimbursement per year.
• Spot bonuses for exceptional performance.
• Annual Employee Recognition Awards with bonuses.
• Employee Referral Program.
• Free centralized, self-directed Learning Management System to learn at your own pace.
• Personalized career growth plans for every employee.