Raymond Watts

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Name: Raymond Watts
Member Since: May 19th, 2010
Member Name: Wattsray
Last Logged In: December 13th, 2015
Location: Fort Collins, CO
Biography:

Ray Watts is an emeritus geographer with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). He began his USGS career as a geophysicist in Denver. For six years he developed radar methods for studying glacier ice; instruments substantially the same as those developed by his early projects are still used to measure thickness of glaciers. He applied these technologies in studies of glaciers in Alaska, Antarctica, and the conterminous United States. Following a brief period of managing geophysicists in Denver, Ray moved to USGS Headquarters in Reston Virginia and served for six years as the Deputy Assistant Director for Research. He was the Executive Secretary of the interagency committee that initiated the U.S. Global Change Research Program. Ray then returned to research and employed his applied mathematical skills in a number of interdisciplinary investigations—including problems in basin-wide extreme erosion and the impacts of roads and traffic on wildlife. Recently his primary interest has been the description and measurement of the evolution of the largest human construction on earth, the North American road network, and the manner of its invasion of roadless spaces large and small. He is the author of more than 80 publications and technical presentations. Ray has a Ph.D. in geophysics from U. of Toronto and a B.A. in physics from Pomona College.