University Corporation for Atmospheric Research

What University Corporation for Atmospheric Research does

The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) is a nonprofit consortium of 129 universities, founded in 1959 and headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, that manages the U.S. National Science Foundation's National Center for Atmospheric Research (NSF NCAR) on behalf of NSF under a cooperative agreement dating to 1960. UCAR operates as a research-infrastructure platform, providing advanced computational, modeling, observational, and educational resources to the atmospheric and Earth system science community. Core technical assets include the 19.87-petaflops Derecho HPE Cray EX supercomputer (with 20% GPU capacity for machine learning) housed at the NSF NCAR-Wyoming Supercomputing Center, the GLADE data storage system, and a portfolio of foundational open-source models — CESM, WRF, MPAS, and WACCM — used globally for climate, weather, and space weather research. The organization employs approximately 830 people at its Boulder Mesa Laboratory and Cheyenne facilities, supports 1,500+ researchers at 500+ U.S. institutions through supercomputing allocations, and operates sub-programs including COMET (online training), Unidata (data tools), CISL (HPC), CPAESS (event management running 200+ events annually), and Project Pythia (Python geoscience education).

Name

University Corporation for Atmospheric Research

Legal name

University Corporation for Atmospheric Research

Website

https://ucar.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1959

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

UCAR is a nonprofit consortium of 129 universities that manages NSF NCAR on behalf of the National Science Foundation, providing supercomputing (Derecho), open-source climate models (CESM, WRF, MPAS, WACCM), and data and training services to the Earth system science community.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Atmospheric and Earth System Science Research Services

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Research Universities with National Laboratories/Big Science Facilities (EDAHAAAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public Research Universities with Multi-Campus Systems (EDAHAAAI)

Keywords

• Atmospheric research services
• Climate modeling software
• Weather prediction models
• High-performance computing
• Earth system science

Headquarters

HQ city

Boulder

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations

Revenue model

1. NSF Cooperative Agreement: Primary federal funding from National Science Foundation through cooperative agreements to manage NCAR. Receives approximately $123 million in core NSF funding annually (roughly half of total budget).
2. NOAA Partnerships: Partnerships with NOAA for supercomputing network expansion through sole-source contracts for N-Wave science and supercomputing network management.
3. University Consortium Fees: UCAR operates as a nonprofit consortium of 129 universities; revenue derived from membership and cooperative research programs with member institutions.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

UCAR is a nonprofit consortium of 129 universities that manages NSF NCAR on behalf of the U.S. National Science Foundation. It operates the 19.87-petaflops Derecho supercomputer at the NCAR-Wyoming Supercomputing Center, develops and distributes open-source Earth system models (CESM, WRF, MPAS, WACCM), runs field campaigns and observational platforms, and provides data services, education, and fellowships to the atmospheric science community.

Product overview

The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) is a nonprofit consortium that manages the U.S. National Science Foundation National Center for Atmospheric Research (NSF NCAR) on behalf of NSF. UCAR operates as a platform-plus-programs organization providing cutting-edge computational, modeling, observational, and educational resources to the Earth system science community. The core offerings include the Derecho supercomputer (19.87 petaflops) at the NCAR-Wyoming Supercomputing Center, major open-source models (CESM, WRF, MPAS, WACCM), and field campaign capabilities. UCAR's community programs encompass data services via the Geoscience Data Exchange (GDEX), education through COMET and Project Pythia, fellowships, visitor programs, and event management. NSF NCAR provides the scientific infrastructure while UCAR manages operations and extends access to over 130 universities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CPAESS: Cooperative Programs for the Advancement of Earth System Science - conducts over 200 events yearly and provides scientific program support
• COMET Program
• Unidata
• CISL
• UCAR Community Programs (UCP)
• UCAR Center for Science Education

Products and services

• Derecho Supercomputer

Quantifiable outcome

• Supports 1,500+ researchers at 500+ U.S. universities with computing resources
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

AI capability11 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 April 2026NOAA issued formal notice to expand N-Wave science and supercomputing network over 10-year period through sole-source contracts. UCAR is a key partner along with Internet2, Indiana University, University of Maryland, and Pacific Northwest GigaPop to manage the national network backbone supporting ~25 major laboratories and 70 research hubs.
• Dominican Institute of Meteorology (Indomet)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 September 2025Collaboration to install low-cost, 3D-printed weather stations in Dominican Republic. Project aims to enhance early warning systems, expand climate monitoring, and support regional forecasting and agricultural management.
• National Science Foundation (NSF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUCAR manages NSF NCAR under a cooperative agreement with NSF. NSF provides approximately $123 million in core annual funding (roughly half of NCAR's total budget) and has funded NCAR since 1960.
• Internet2/UCAIDcoreTechnology or IntegrationPartner in NOAA N-Wave network expansion for managing national network backbone supporting research and education grade networking.
• Indiana UniversitycoreTechnology or IntegrationPartner in NOAA N-Wave network expansion for managing regional optical networks supporting research institutions.
• University of MarylandcoreTechnology or IntegrationPartner in NOAA N-Wave network expansion for managing regional optical networks supporting research institutions.
• Pacific Northwest GigaPopcoreTechnology or IntegrationPartner in NOAA N-Wave network expansion for managing regional optical networks supporting research institutions.
• University of ColoradocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Colorado formally offered to manage NCAR through a university-led consortium including University of Wyoming and University of Oklahoma, if federal restructuring proceeds. CU's letter to NSF argues against splitting up or selling NCAR to for-profit entities.
• University of WyomingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of proposed university-led consortium with University of Colorado and University of Oklahoma to manage NCAR if federal restructuring proceeds.
• University of OklahomacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of proposed university-led consortium with University of Colorado and University of Wyoming to manage NCAR if federal restructuring proceeds.
• Member Universities (129 institutions)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUCAR is a nonprofit consortium of 129 universities. Member institutions have governance representation and access to NCAR research facilities, models, and supercomputing resources.
• National Hurricane Center (NHC)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with UCAR on Dominican Republic 3D-printed weather station project for enhanced early warning systems.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF): Intergovernmental organization operating global numerical weather prediction and supercomputing infrastructure for atmospheric research. Directly comparable to UCAR/NCAR in mission (Earth system modeling, weather forecasting), member-governance model, and reliance on publicly-funded supercomputing for atmospheric science.
• UK Met Office Hadley Centre: UK national meteorological service with leading climate modeling (HadGEM, UKESM) and supercomputing capabilities. Comparable to UCAR in operating Earth system models for both operational forecasting and research, providing compute access to scientific communities, and serving as national capability for atmospheric/climate science.
• Universities Research Association (URA): U.S. nonprofit consortium of 89 universities that manages Fermilab for the Department of Energy. Direct structural parallel to UCAR: university-led consortium managing a major federal research facility under cooperative agreement, providing scientific user community access to large-scale infrastructure.
• Associated Universities, Inc. (AUI): Nonprofit that manages the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) and other astronomical facilities for the NSF. Structurally identical to UCAR's relationship with NCAR: a university-affiliated nonprofit consortium operating major federally-funded research infrastructure on behalf of NSF under cooperative agreement.
• Universities Space Research Association (USRA): Nonprofit scientific consortium of 117 universities operating in space and atmospheric research. Comparable to UCAR as a university consortium model supporting federal research with shared governance, workforce development programs, and management of research facilities.
• National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA): University-based supercomputing center providing HPC resources to U.S. researchers. Comparable to UCAR's CISL/Derecho operation as a federally-supported HPC facility serving academic research communities, with overlapping user bases and similar mission of democratizing access to advanced computing.
• Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC): University-based HPC center at UT Austin operating leadership-class supercomputers for academic research. Comparable to UCAR's CISL in providing NSF-supported advanced computing resources to U.S. researchers, with similar user allocation models and HPC training/outreach programs (parallel to UCAR's SIParCS internship).

Broad incumbents

• Max Planck Society: Germany's largest non-governmental research organization operating 86 institutes including the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology. Comparable to UCAR as a publicly-funded, multi-institutional research organization with deep expertise in atmospheric/climate science, though with broader scientific scope beyond Earth system sciences.
• CNRS (Centre national de la recherche scientifique): France's largest fundamental research organization with significant atmospheric/climate research programs. Comparable to UCAR in operating national-scale research infrastructure and providing scientific user access, but with much broader disciplinary scope spanning all fields of science.
• Battelle Memorial Institute: Largest nonprofit applied science organization, managing multiple DOE and other federal national laboratories. Comparable to UCAR in operating federally-funded research infrastructure under management contracts, though with much broader scientific scope and for-profit revenue lines alongside nonprofit research.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/atmosnews
• Facebookfacebook.com/atmosnews
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/university-corporation-for-atmospheric-research

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about University Corporation for Atmospheric Research