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UCAR |
UOP |
The National
Center for Atmospheric Research conducts collaborative
research in atmospheric and Earth system science and
provides a broad array of tools and technologies to the scientific community.
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The University
Corporation for Atmospheric Research is
a not-for-profit consortium of universities that grant
Ph.D.s in fields related to atmospheric science.
UCAR's primary activity is
managing the National Center for Atmospheric Research.
UCAR also provides services
to support, enhance, and extend
the capabilities of the universities through the
UCAR Office of Programs and by advocating for strong
federal science budgets on behalf of the geosciences
community. |
The UCAR
Office of Programs brings geoscience communities
together to address large-scale, integrated research
and education challenges. Activities include:- offering education and training services to weather
forecasters and academia
- developing and transferring technologies to meet
research, education, and societal needs
- supplying access to data and data tools and improving
data services
- building and hosting community-initiated and -led
projects
- providing conference, workshop, travel, and program
support
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Funding/Sponsors/Affiliations
- NCAR's primary sponsor is the National
Science Foundation.
- NCAR is an NSF Federally
Funded Research and Development Center. However,
NCAR/UCAR/UOP is not a federal agency and its employees
are not part of the federal personnel system. Our activities
complement those of the federal agencies and we work
closely with them
- Approximately 95% of funding comes from the federal government.
There are many atmospheric research organizations in Boulder.
To avoid confusion:
- NCAR is not a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) or of NOAA’s National Weather
Service or any other federal agency.
- Neither NCAR nor UCAR are part of the University of Colorado.
However, the University of Colorado is one of over
70 member
universities that govern UCAR.
- NCAR does not issue public weather forecasts. Projections
of future weather and climate produced by our computer
models as part of ongoing research may be posted on our
Web site for research and educational purposes.
List of our major sponsors ›
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By the Numbers
Staff as of
March 2008 |
Total
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NCAR |
UCAR
Office of Programs |
All Staff
(research, technical,
and support staff) |
~ 1,460
Total
(~ 1,345
in Boulder area, including ~270 in UCAR management, education
and outreach) |
~ 950 |
~ 240 |
| Scientists (Ph.D.s, including tenure-track
and project scientists) |
~239 |
~212 |
~27 |
| Engineers and software engineers |
~214 |
~182 |
~32 |
| Postdoctoral Fellows |
~57 |
~35 |
~22 |
Expenditures |
Total |
NCAR |
UOP |
Fiscal Year 2007
(October 2006–September
2007) |
~ $222 million |
~ $174
million |
~ $48
million |
NCAR's Supercomputers
NCAR is a world leader in supercomputing for the geosciences,
providing services to NCAR researchers, UCAR member
universities in North America, and affiliates worldwide.
High-end
Computing at NCAR
Supercomputer Gallery: Supercomputers at NCAR, past and present
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About Our Members and Affiliates
The UCAR consortium consists of
- 71 UCAR Members, North American universities that grant Ph.D.s
in areas related to atmospheric science
- 19 UCAR Affiliates who offer bachelor’s
and master’s programs in the field, and
- 48 International Affiliates
Lists of members and
affiliates ›
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Our History
UCAR began as a consortium of research institutions
with doctoral programs in the atmospheric and related sciences
that first met in 1959. In 1960, after UCAR had been incorporated
and Walter Orr Roberts selected as its first president, the UCAR
Board of Trustees unanimously approved Boulder as the site for
NCAR and gave Roberts a second title, inaugural director of NCAR.
NCAR's first office opened in Boulder in June 1960.
I.M. Pei was hired as architect and ground was broken on NCAR's
Mesa Laboratory on June 9, 1964. NCAR's primary sponsor, the National
Science Foundation, provided construction funds for the lab,
which was completed in 1966. This Boulder landmark sits atop a
600-foot mesa above the city, against the dramatic Flatirons formation
at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Pei based his
design on
an adaptation of the centuries-old Indian cliff dwellings at Mesa
Verde National Park in southwest Colorado.
The Mesa Lab's Visitor
Center is open to the public daily. To learn more about our
other campuses, see Location, below.
More
history ›
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Location
UCAR and NCAR are headquartered in Boulder,
Colorado, with most activity taking place on three campuses
- NCAR Mesa Laboratory and UCAR Fleischmann Building (southwest
Boulder)
- Foothills Laboratory and Center Green Campus (northeast Boulder)
- Research Aviation Facility (Jefferson County Airport, Broomfield,
Colorado)
In addition, NCAR's High Altitude Observatory operates the Mauna
Loa Solar Observatory, Hilo, Hawaii
Ancillary activities take place elsewhere in Boulder, in Washington,
D.C., and in about 15 other states.
Correspondence and deliveries,
maps and directions >
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How to Pronounce NCAR
- NCAR is pronounced "EN-car" and is generally
written without
"the" before the acronym.
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Contacts
Career Opportunities—Human
Resources
Media Relations
How to visit NCAR's Mesa
Lab: Public tours, exhibits, hours
Organizational
structure
Research activities
Tools and facilities for
research and education
Correspondence and deliveries,
maps and directions
Updated:
March 13, 2008
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