What is NCAR?
 
 
 
 
    

Welcome to the National Center for Atmospheric Research

We are a research organization, established in 1960, that seeks to better understand our atmosphere and how weather and climate affect the Earth.

At the National Center for Atmospheric Research, or NCAR, over 120 Ph.D. researchers and hundreds of visiting scientists conduct interdisciplinary research with state of the art research tools. They have discovered much about the Earth system including how the Sun influences the Earth, how climate change can be predicted, and how we can better forecast the weather. NCAR researchers also study how weather and climate change affects people and environments around the globe.

NCAR is located in Boulder, Colorado and is operated by The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation (NSF), our primary sponsor.

Discover more about us

Click on topics to the left to learn about the history of the National Center for Atmospheric Research, explore the unique architecture of our laboratory perched on a Boulder, Colorado mesa and discover the research divisions that thrive within.