Timothy Coffey was born in Washington, D.C. in 1941. He graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1962 with a B.S. degree in electrical engineering, and obtained his M.S. and Ph.D., both in physics, from the University of Michigan in 1963 and 1967, respectively.
Dr. Coffey joined the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) in 1971 as Head of the Plasma Dynamics Branch, Plasma Physics Division. He directed research on the simulation of plasma instabilities, the development of multidimensional fluid and magnetohydrodynamic codes, and the development of computer codes for treating chemically reactive flows. After a series of promotions, he was named Director of Research in 1982. Dr. Coffey retired from the Naval Research Laboratory in October 2001 and joined the University of Maryland.
Dr. Coffey was awarded the Fahrney Medal for his leadership in scientific research and technology, both in acquiring the facts and describing their implications relative to a wide range of phenomena of current and future importance in naval and space applications, and for assembling, organizing and supporting teams of scientists who will explore for many consecutive years the frontiers of our knowledge of nature.
Information as of 1991