Rear Admiral Francis D. "Bill" MoranRensberger, Boyce, "The Few, the Proud – the NOAA?," washingtonpost.com, September 10, 1986.
/ref> (born 8 April 1935) is a retired career officer who served in the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, its successor, the Environmental Science Services Administration Corps (ESSA Corps), and the ESSA Corps's successor, the

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, known informally as the NOAA Corps, is one of eight federal uniformed services of the United States, and operates under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administ ...

(NOAA Corps). He served as the third Director of the NOAA Corps. During his career, Moran created and led two new

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditio ...

(NOAA) aviation units, and also established the first

fisheries Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life; or more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a. fishing ground). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farms, both ...

program for NOAA personnel.

Early life

Moran was born in

Biloxi Biloxi ( ; ) is a city in and one of two county seats of Harrison County, Mississippi, United States (the other being the adjacent city of Gulfport). The 2010 United States Census recorded the population as 44,054 and in 2019 the estimated popu ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

, on 8 April 1935. He graduated from the

University of Southern Mississippi The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a public research university with its main campus located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's, ma ...

in 1960 with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree in

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

and

geology Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...

.Anonymous, "New NOAA Corps Director," ''NOAA Report'', September 17, 1986, p. 1.
/ref> After graduating, he was awarded an assistantship at the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

Career

In 1961, Moran joined the

United States Coast and Geodetic Survey The United States Coast and Geodetic Survey (abbreviated USC&GS), known from 1807 to 1836 as the Survey of the Coast and from 1836 until 1878 as the United States Coast Survey, was the first scientific agency of the United States Government. It ...

, accepting a commission as an

ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

in the

United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, known informally as the NOAA Corps, is one of eight federal uniformed services of the United States, and operates under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administ ...

. In the following years, he served on five

survey ship A survey vessel is any type of ship or boat that is used for underwater surveys, usually to collect data for mapping or planning underwater construction or mineral extraction. It is a type of research vessel, and may be designed for the purpo ...

s of the Coast and Geodetic Survey fleet. On 13 July 1965, a new

United States Government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a fede ...

scientific agency, the

Environmental Science Services Administration The Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA) was a United States Federal executive agency created in 1965 as part of a reorganization of the United States Department of Commerce. Its mission was to unify and oversee the meteorologica ...

(ESSA), was created. Under the reorganization that created ESSA, both the Coast and Geodetic Survey and the

United States Weather Bureau The National Weather Service (NWS) is an agency of the United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weather-related products to organizations and the public for the p ...

, although retaining their independent identities, came under the control of ESSA, and the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps was removed from the Coast and Geodetic Survey and subordinated directly to ESSA, becoming the

Environmental Science Services Administration Corps A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...

(ESSA Corps). As of that date, Moran became an officer of the new ESSA Corps. On 3 October 1970, ESSA was abolished and replaced by the

(NOAA). Under the reorganization that accompanied the creation of NOAA, the Coast and Geodetic Survey was abolished and its functions were transferred to various parts of the new NOAA organization. The ESSA Corps became the new

(NOAA Corps), and Moran became a NOAA Corps officer. Moran served as chief of NOAA's Pacific Tides Party and as NOAA liaison to the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

from 1970 to 1973. In 1974, he attended the

University of Rhode Island The University of Rhode Island (URI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Kingston, Rhode Island, United States. It is the flagship public research as well as the land-grant university of the state of Rhode Island ...

full-time, graduating that year with a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in marine affairs; during his time at the university, he established and attended the first

program for NOAA personnel.Anonymous, "New NOAA Corps Director," ''NOAA Report'', September 17, 1986, p. 2.
/ref> From 1975 to 1981, he was assigned to the NOAA Research Facilities Center, where he established and served as chief of the Helicopter Operations Group, which supported the Outer

Continental Shelf A continental shelf is a portion of a continent that is submerged under an area of relatively shallow water, known as a shelf sea. Much of these shelves were exposed by drops in sea level during glacial periods. The shelf surrounding an island ...

Energy Assessment Program. From 1982 to 1983, Moran was the executive assistant in the Office of the Deputy Administrator of NOAA. From 1983 to 1986, he was the first director of NOAA's new Office of Aircraft Operations, bringing together five semi-autonomous NOAA aviation units to create the new office, and by the end of that tour was a

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

who had amassed over 6,000 hours in flight time and was the only NOAA Corps officer qualified in every type of helicopter and

fixed-wing aircraft A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air flying machine, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using wings that generate lift caused by the aircraft's forward airspeed and the shape of the wings. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinc ...

in the NOAA inventory. On 17 June 1986,

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

nominated Moran to succeed Rear Admiral Kelly E. Taggart as Director of the NOAA Corps. Confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

that year, he served as director until his retirement in 1990.

Personal life

Moran and his wife have two children.

Awards

US Department of Commerce Silver Medal ribbon

Department of Commerce Silver Medal The Department of Commerce Silver Medal is the second highest of three honor awards of the United States Department of Commerce. Since 1949, the Silver Medal is presented by the Secretary of Commerce for exceptional service. The award may be prese ...

In a ceremony on 20 November 1986 in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, Moran received the

for his work during his 1983–1986 tour as director of the new Office of Aviation Operations.Program of Thirty-Eighth Annual Honor Awards, United States Department of Commerce, November 20, 1986: Silver Medal Recipients: Francis D. Moran
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moran, Francis D. 1935 births Living people People from Biloxi, Mississippi 20th-century American mathematicians American geologists American aviators University of Southern Mississippi alumni University of Rhode Island alumni United States Coast and Geodetic Survey personnel Environmental Science Services Administration personnel National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps admirals Recipients of the Department of Commerce Silver Medal