Contact Information
Bio
Lt Col Samantha R. Howard is an Assistant Professor in the Physics and Meteorology Department at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo.
Lt Col Howard entered the Air Force in May 2011, commissioning through the Academy. Since that time, she has held a variety of technical leadership and education positions within the Air Force Research Laboratory, the Academy, and the U.S. Space Force’s Combat Forces Command (formerly Space Operations Command), with a particular focus on Space Domain Awareness and space weather. Additionally, she deployed as the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) Operations Battle Captain, interfacing directly with Afghan and NATO partners within the Resolute Support Combined Joint Operations Center.
Prior to her current position, Lt Col Howard was the Deputy Chief, Space Domain Awareness Capabilities Enhancement Division, Combat Forces Command, Peterson Space Force Base, Colo.
Education
Air Command and Staff College, Maxwell AFB, Ala., by correspondence (2024)
Doctor of Philosophy, Applied Physics, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio (2023)
Squadron Officer School, Maxwell AFB, Ala. (2017)
Master of Science, Applied Physics, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio (2015)
Bachelor of Science, Physics, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo. (2011)
Professional Experience
Assistant Professor of Physics, Department of Physics and Meteorology, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo. (June 2026 – Present)
Deputy Chief, Space Domain Awareness Capabilities Enhancement Division, Combat Forces Command, Peterson SFB, Colorado (September 2023 – June 2026)
Student, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio (August 2020 – September 2023)
Executive Officer and Instructor of Physics, Department of Physics, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo. (June 2019 – July 2020)
Instructor of Physics, Department of Physics, U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo. (December 2017 – June 2019)
Science & Technology Intelligence Analyst, Directed Energy Directorate, Air Force Research Labs, Kirtland AFB, N.M. (May 2017 – November 2017)
Afghan National Defense and Security Forces Operations Battle Captain, Combined Joint Operations Center, Resolute Support Headquarters, Kabul, Afghanistan (October 2016 – May 2017)
Advanced Research, Collaboration, and Application Development Environment Deputy Program Manager, Space Vehicles Directorate, Air Force Research Labs, Kirtland AFB, N.M. (April 2016 – May 2017)
Student, Air Force Institute of Technology, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio (August 2013 – March 2015)
Infrared Sensors Research Physicist, Sensors Directorate, Air Force Research Labs, Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio (August 2011 – August 2013)
Honors & Awards
Meritorious Service Medal with oak leaf cluster
Joint Service Commendation Medal
Air and Space Commendation Medal
Air and Space Achievement Medal
Research and Scholarly Interests
Heliophysics, Space Weather, Space Domain Awareness
Publications
S. R. Howard, “Improving & Evaluating Performance of the Proton Prediction System Through an Expanded Solar Proton Event Catalog,” PhD Dissertation, Air Force Institute of Technology, WPAFB, OH, 2023.
S.A. Hess Webber; S. S. Mahajan; A. Koufos; S. Chatterjee; K. D. Leka; V. Sadykov; S. R. Howard; N. Nitta; J. T, Hoeksema; C. E. DeForest et al. “You Get What You Pay for: Scientific Engineering Challenges for Successful Distributed Multi-Satellite Missions in Solar and Heliophysics,” Bulletin of the AAS, Vol. 55, Issue 3 (Heliophysics 2024 Decadal Whitepapers), 2023.
J. Murray-Krezan, S. Howard, C. Sabol, R. Kim, J. Echeverry. “The Joint Space Operations Center Mission System and the Advanced Research, Collaboration, and Application Development Environment Status Update 2016,” in Proc. SPIE 9838, Sensors and Systems for Space Applications IX, 983809, Baltimore, MD, 2016.
J. Murray-Krezan, S. Howard, P. D. Dao, and D. Surka, “GEO Collisional Risk Assessment Based on Analysis of NASA-WISE Data and Modeling,” in Proceedings of the Advanced Maui Optical and Space Surveillance Technologies Conference, Maui, HI, 2015, pp. 273-283.
S. R. Howard, “Automated Sunspot Detection and Classification Using SOHO/MDI Imagery,” M.S. Thesis, Air Force Institute of Technology, WPAFB, OH, 2015.