ucar Highlights 2007

Highlights is the biennial overview of the activities of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) and its two major components, the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the UCAR Office of Programs (UOP).

Highlights is published by UCAR Communications. This edition covers our accomplishments from 2005 through mid-2007 as well as upcoming activities.

WHO WE ARE      INTRODUCTION       UCAR AT A GLANCE

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A Community of PeersA Community of Peers

UCAR nourishes connections among scores of universities and laboratories, engaging thousands of people, all working to understand the exquisite complexity of the atmosphere and its relation to Earth, ice, sea, Sun, and life.

The personal touch: How a week, a month, or a year with colleagues can boost a career

Africa in mind: building scientific and social bridges to a continent

Servicio en español: Translation and innovation expand UCAR’s connections to the Spanish-speaking world

From passing interest to passion: A SOARS success story

Online pathways for science education

Extra computing prowess for the community

Whatever the weather: dealing with atmospheric impacts

Winds of Change Winds of Change

Understanding the most critical environmental threat of our time—a climate in flux—is one of the prime goals of NCAR scientists and their university colleagues. Their work flows from NCAR’s rich and sustained program of basic research on the Earth system.

The character of change: New pathways in global change science

Top of the world: The human influence on Earth’s middle and upper atmosphere

Shaping the atmosphere: Old dreams and new visions of weather and climate control

Models and molecules: Interactive chemistry comes of age

Online pathways for science education

How to talk about climate change

Oceans and carbon dioxide

A tropical tempest: The storm over hurricanes and climate change

Transformative ToolsTransformative Tools

Serving researchers based at universities and laboratories as well as its own staff, NCAR maintains a world-class fleet of facilities for observing and modeling the Earth system, from a powerful new aircraft to software that depicts the atmosphere in compelling detail.

Filling in the gaps: New ways to pull data from uncharted skies

Tiny troubles in the air: Measuring scant compounds and their big impact on air quality

Coding the atmosphere: The quest for software that’s flexible, versatile, affordable, and accurate

A magnetic team: Peering into the Sun’s plasma

Layering the atmosphere

A window on water vapor

A research aircraft is born: The NSF/NCAR Gulfstream-V flies high (and far)
 
UCAR at a glance UCAR goals Introduction Who we are The century after tomorrow Sharing our world's air Prognosticators at work Minute by minute Clear and bright Winter's wallop