Xiwu Zhan received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from Nanjing Institute of Meteorology in China and Ph.D. degree from Cornell University. With a two year postdoctoral research experience at USDA Hydrology Lab, he joined the research faculty of the Department of Geography at University of Maryland College Park to lead the MODIS research team for creating global land cover and land cover change products. He started his microwave remote sensing and data assimilation research with a research position at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. He took a civil servant position at USDA Hydrology and Remote Sensing Lab in 2005 and joined the Center for Satellite Applications and Research of NOAA-NESDIS in 2006. Dr. Zhan's research interests include developing land remote sensing data products and applying them in
numerical weather, seasonal climate and hydrologic models and other related societal activities.