Rear Admiral Chad M. Cary serves as the 20th director of NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps and assistant administrator for NOAA’s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations.
In addition to leading the NOAA Corps — one of the nation’s eight uniformed services — Rear Adm. Cary oversees NOAA’s fleet of 15 research and survey ships and 10 specialized aircraft, including the agency’s Hurricane Hunters, all of which are operated, managed, and maintained by a combination of NOAA Corps officers and civilians in support of NOAA’s science, service, and stewardship mission. He is also responsible for the multi-billion recapitalization of these platforms.
A NOAA Corps officer since 2001, he has served in many operational and management assignments with NOAA, most recently as deputy director of the NOAA Corps and NOAA Marine and Aviation Operations deputy director for operations. In that capacity, he oversaw the day-to-day operations of marine, aviation, and uncrewed systems operations, as well as the office's health and cyber services.
Rear Adm. Cary’s experience as a NOAA mariner has taken him from the Bering Sea to Georges Bank. He has held command positions aboard NOAA ships Reuben Lasker, Henry B. Bigelow, Nancy Foster, and John N. Cobb. He has also served as the director of the NOAA Corps Commissioned Personnel Center, and applied his at-sea and shoreside operational experience to support NOAA Fisheries, National Weather Service and NOAA headquarters.
Rear Adm. Cary was born and raised in Alaska. He earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental science with an emphasis in marine sciences from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill before joining the NOAA Corps. He also holds a master’s degree in geography from Portland State University and a graduate certificate in legislative studies from Georgetown University.
He is accompanied on this adventure by his wife, Dayna, and their three children.
United States