National Center for Atmospheric Research

NCAR Logo
NCAR Mesa Laboratory, Boulder, Colorado

The US National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR, pronounced EN-car[1]) is a US federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) managed by the nonprofit University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) and funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). .[2] NCAR has multiple facilities, including the I. M. Pei-designed Mesa Laboratory headquarters in Boulder, Colorado. Studies include meteorology, climate science, atmospheric chemistry, solar-terrestrial interactions, environmental and societal impacts.

Tools and technologies

NCAR provides a broad array of tools and technologies to the scientific community for studying Earth’s atmosphere, including,[3][4]

Staffing areas and notable past and present scientists

The center is staffed by scientists, engineers, technicians, and support personnel.[2] Key research areas include [5]

Notable scientists on the current staff at the center include Tom Wigley, Kevin Trenberth, and Caspar Ammann,[6] and in past have included Paul Crutzen (Nobel Prize in chemistry, 1995); Paul Julian, who with colleague Roland Madden discovered the Madden–Julian oscillation; Stephen Schneider . Greg Holland initiated the multiscale modeling project "Predicting the Earth System Across Scales".[7]

Organization of research—laboratories and programs

NCAR is currently organized into five laboratories and two programs:[8]

Laboratories

Programs

NCAR's service to the universities and larger geosciences community is reinforced by the offerings of UCAR's community programs.[9][10]

Funding and management

NCAR is managed by the nonprofit UCAR and is one of the NSF's Federally Funded Research and Development Centers, with approximately 95% of its funding coming from the federal government. However, it is not a federal agency and its employees are not part of the federal personnel system.[1] NCAR employs about 1,000 staff. Its annual expenditures in fiscal year 2008

were $181 million.[1]

NCAR Directors

The founding director of NCAR was Walter Orr Roberts.[11] The current director is James Hurrell.[2]

NCAR Director Dates in office
Walter Orr Roberts 1960 - 1968
John W. Firor 1968 - 1974
Francis P. Bretherton 1974 - 1980
Wilmot N. Hess 1980 - 1986
Richard A. Anthes 1986 - 1988
Robert Serafin 1989 - 2000
Timothy Killeen 2000 - 2008
Eric J. Barron 2008 - 2010
Roger M. Wakimoto 2010 - 2013
Maura Hagan 2013 (Interim Director)
James W. Hurrell 2013 -

Visiting

Scientific visitors

NCAR has many opportunities for scientific visits to the facilities for workshops, colloquia, and collaboration by colleagues in academia, government labs, and the private sector.[12] Many NCAR staff also visit colleagues at universities and labs and serve as adjunct or visiting faculty.[10][12]

Public tours

The Visitor Center at the Mesa Laboratory is open to the public daily at no charge. Guided tours and self-guided tablet tours include video and audio on one of the first supercomputers built by Seymour Cray as well as NCAR's modern supercomputer fleet, many hands-on educational exhibits demonstrating weather phenomena and Earth's changing climate, and a scenic outdoor weather trail.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Quick Facts about NCAR & UCAR
  2. 1 2 3 "New Director of the U.S. National Center for Atmospheric Research Rose Through the Ranks". July 31, 2013.
  3. ↑ NCAR Research & Resources
  4. ↑ National Center for Atmospheric Research (NSF Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences)
  5. ↑ Atmospheric & Earth System Research: NCAR research topics, 2008, accessed 2010-06-22.
  6. ↑ Pearce, Fred, The Climate Files: The Battle for the Truth about Global Warming, (2010) Guardian Books, ISBN 978-0-85265-229-9, p. XVIII.
  7. ↑ M. Gad-el-Hak Large Scale Disasters Prediction Control and Mitigation" 2008 "was initiated by Greg Holland"
  8. 1 2 NCAR's Clickable Organization Chart
  9. ↑ UCAR Community Programs
  10. 1 2 UCAR Highlights
  11. ↑ NCAR Directors
  12. 1 2 Visitor Programs – Opportunities for Scientific Visitors & Students

External links

Coordinates: 39°58′41″N 105°16′30″W / 39.97815°N 105.27492°W / 39.97815; -105.27492

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