Shirley Murillo

Headshot of Shirley Murillo of AOML. 690px

Research Highlights

Research Interests

Tropical cyclone wind field structure.

Radar observations.

Hurricane Field Program planning.

Overseeing transition of scientific research into the hurricane forecasting operational environment.

Shirley Murillo

Acting Director, Hurricane Research Division

4301 Rickenbacker Causeway
Miami, Florida 33149

Shirley Murillo is the Deputy Director of AOML’s Hurricane Research Division in Miami, Florida.

Ms. Shirley Murillo is the on-site lead for the Hurricane Wind analysis (H*Wind) science team. This group, comprised of meteorologists and computer software engineers, conduct real time wind analyses products that are available to the scientific community. Shirley is also the science liaison for NOAA’s Joint Hurricane Testbed (JHT). The JHT serves to bridge and transfer new technology and research results into operations. Shirley plays critical role in ensuring the transition of research happens smoothly. Murillo also participates in numerous research flights into tropical cyclones aboard NOAA’s WP-3D aircraft over the Atlantic Basin and Gulf of Mexico. On these flights she has operated and monitored various instruments onboard the aircraft. Ms. Murillo served as the Hurricane Field Program Director (2011 and 2012) where she was responsible for organizing, planning and overseeing all research and operational flights into tropical cyclones.

Current Work

Deputy Director, Hurricane Research Division

M.S., Meteorology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI

B.S., Meteorology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL

  1. Zawislak, J., R.F. Rogers, S.D. Aberson, G.J. Alaka, G. Alvey, A. Aksoy, L. Bucci, J. Cione, N. Dorst, J. Dunion, M. Fischer, J. Gamache, S. Gopalakrishnan, A. Hazelton, H.M. Holbach, J. Kaplan, H. Leighton, F. Marks, S.T. Murillo, P. Reasor, K. Ryan, K. Sellwood, J.A. Sippel, and J.A. Zhang. Accomplishments of NOAA’S airborne hurricane field program and a broader future approach to forecast improvement. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, 103(2):E311-E338, https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-20-0174.1 2022
    Ref. 3984
  2. Ryan, K., L. Bucci, R. Atlas, J. Delgado, and S. Murillo. Impact of Gulfstream-IV dropsondes on tropical cyclone prediction in a regional OSSE system. Monthly Weather Review, 147(8):2961-2977, https://doi.org/10.1175/MWR-D-18-0157.1 2019
    Ref. 3643
  3. Atlas, R., L. Bucci, B. Annane, R. Hoffman, and S. Murillo. Observing System Simulation Experiments to assess the potential impact of new observing systems on hurricane forecasting. Marine Technology Society Journal, 49(6):140-148, https://doi.org/10.4031/MTSJ.49.6.3 2015
    Ref. 3215

2013 South Florida Federal Executive Board Federal Employee of the Year (Management Category) Award

For leadership in managing the 2012 Hurricane Field Program, an effort which involved the collaboration of scientists throughout NOAA, other federal agencies, and academic partners, and the Joint Hurricane Test Bed project. 

2011 American Meteorological Society Charles E. Anderson Award

For outstanding support of minorities and women to promote a more diverse workforce through mentoring, education, and community service. 

2011 NASA Group Achievement Award

For outstanding contributions to the Genesis and Rapid Intensification Processes (GRIP) field campaign as members of the GRIP Science Team during the 2010 Atlantic hurricane season. 

2007 Army Corps of Engineers Patriotic Civilian Service Award

In recognition of your participation on the Hurricane Katrina Interagency Performance Evaluation Task Force.

2007 U.S. Department of Commerce Bronze Medal

For employing a unique technology to diagnose Hurricane Katrina’s winds, a technology needed for surge, wave, intensity, and ecosystem modeling efforts.

March 2007 NOAA Employee of the Month Award

For research on the boundary layer wind structure of landfalling tropical cyclones with includes real-time surface wind analyses that provide wind field products for use by the National Hurricane Center, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and emergency managers. 

2006 U.S. Department of Commerce Bronze Medal

For conducting field operations immediately following Hurricane Katrina’s Gulf of Mexico passage that were vital to ensuring seafood was safe for public consumption, saving millions in potential fishery losses.

2003 Career Communications Group Young Scientist-Rising Star Award

For outstanding contributions to hurricane research and leadership in science education outreach.

2001 NOAATech Conference – Best Technology Transfer to Operations Award

For outstanding achievement in the research and application of HPCC technology to further NOAA’s service to the nation (presentation about Project H*WIND, a Java application for global tropical cyclone monitoring and wind analysis).

2000 NOAATech Conference – Best JAVA Implementation Award

For their presentation entitled “A Distributed, Real-Time Hurricane Wind Analysis System” (H*WIND)