Wakimoto studied meteorology at San Jose State University, earning a B.S. as a Graduate with Honors and Great Distinction in 1976. He then earned a Ph.D. in geophysical science at the University of Chicago in 1981 with the dissertation Investigations of Thunderstorm Gust Fronts from Project NIMROD Data under advisor Ted Fujita. He was a research associate in the Department of the Geophysical Sciences from 1981-1983. In 1983, Wakimoto became an assistant professor in the Department of Atmospheric Sciences at the University of California, Los Angeles where he remained for 22 years, eventually was promoted to professor in 1993 and served as department chairperson from 1996-2000. Wakimoto arrived at the NCAR in 2005 as associate director of the Earth Observing Laboratory and was appointed director of NCAR in 2010.Dr. Wakimoto remained director of NCAR until February 2013 when he was offered a post by the National Science Foundation NSF as assistant director for the Directorate for Geosciences. Wakimoto was a principal investigator of VORTEX2, the field project phase of which occurred in 2009-2010. He has participated in a dozen major field experiments including NIMROD, JAWS, ERICA, , , , , and . When Wakimoto took the position of National Science Foundation assistant director for the geosciences, he oversaw a budget of nearly $1 billion for research on atmospheric, ocean, polar, and Earth sciences. His predecessor from July 2008 - June 2012, Tim Killeen, was also NCAR director prior to heading NSF GEO. Wakimoto was elected a Fellow of the American Meteorological Society in 1996, was a Councilor from 1997-2000, and received its Meisinger Award for "significant contributions to the understanding of mesoscale phenomena through insightful and detailed analysis of observations" in 1992. He served on the AMS Committee on Severe Local Storms from 1987-1991, the UCAR/AMS Committee on the Study on Observational Systems from 1988-1990, and the AMS Committee on Radar Meteorology from 2000-2004. He has published over 100 journal articles and was associate editor of Monthly Weather Review, as well as co-editor of AMS Meteorological Monograph: . From 2003-2006, he served on the National Academies Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate. Father of two sons, Paul and Sean Wakimoto.
