
Scientific understanding of weather and climate has expanded dramatically, but the application of that knowledge to societal needs remains a grand challenge. Decision makers face an increasingly complex world as human population continues to grow and its associated impacts on the environment escalate. They need better information, tools, and systems to understand, and address, the effects of weather and climate. As the NSF's federally-funded research and development center, NCAR is in a unique position to partner with federal and state agencies to identify and pursue high priority weather and climate information needs for decision-making and to develop the tools decision makers need to plan for hazardous weather events, to improve operational weather forecasting, and to adapt to subtle but long-lasting changes in our climate.
NCAR efforts in this area include:
Priority 1: Investigating Weather and Climate Information Needs and Decision Making
Incorporating Climate Change Information in Water Utility Planning
Priority 2: Building Capacity for Coping with Weather and Climate Hazards
Climate Change, Seasonality and Environmental Hazards
Priority 3: Establishing New Connections with Researchers from Developing Nations
ISTP (International Symposium on Tropospheric Profiling)
Building Capacity in Developing Countries