Edward Neil "Ed" Rappaport (born November 18, 1957)^[1] served as the acting director of the National Hurricane Center from 2007 to 2008 and again from 2017 to 2018. He replaced former director Bill Proenza on July 9, 2007.^[2][3] Rappaport was replaced by Bill Read in 2008. He began serving as acting director again when Richard Knabb left the NHC in 2017^[4] until Kenneth Graham was selected to succeed him in 2018.^[5]

Rappaport joined the NHC in 1987, training as a post-doctoral fellow, then worked on an array of assignments as a research meteorologist starting in 1988. He ascended to assistant hurricane specialist and Tropical Satellite and Analysis Center meteorologist in 1990 before becoming a hurricane specialist in 1993. From 1998 to 2000, he was chief of the Technical Support Branch. Having both operational forecasting and research experience, Rappaport became deputy director in 2000.^[6] In November 2006, he declined to be nominated to replace Max Mayfield as director, citing personal reasons.^[2] Rappaport earned his B.S. and M.S. in 1979 and 1983, respectively, both from the University of Washington, and earned his Ph.D. in atmospheric science from Texas Tech University in 1988.^[7]