CO-LABS response to the Proposed “Breaking Up” of NCAR

December 18, 2025

CO-LABS has a response to the statement by Russel Vought, Director of the Office of Management and Budget, that “The National Science Foundation will be breaking up the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado" and that NCAR is “one of the largest sources of climate alarmism in the country”. We have shared this statement with our elected representatives.

CO-LABS does not accept this mischaracterization of the research by NCAR and is assembling a coalition of partners from the public and private sector to help defend and champion their research. This threatened dismantling of scientific research cannot be ignored.   

The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) was founded in 1960 and has been a crucial and trusted source of weather and climate research brilliance. Over the decades, NCAR’s advances in forecasting, climate modeling, and risk assessment have become embedded in the tools that emergency managers, agencies, and communities rely on to protect lives and infrastructure.

NCAR scientists translate cutting‑edge research into actionable guidance for anticipating floods, fires, heat waves, and storms at scales that matter for local decision‑making. And since severe weather can affect every Congressional District in the United States, every elected representative should recognize dismantling NCAR will undermine and reduce our country’s ability to predict and prepare for extreme weather events.

Examples of NCAR’s research that benefits the country:

·        In 2025 NCAR led the largest U.S. hail study in 40 years, chasing storms to measure hail size, fall speed, and impact forces in detail. Hailstorms cause billions in damage and pose risks to life and property; data will improve hail detection, forecasting, and warnings to protect communities and insurance costs can be better managed.

·        Decades of NCAR climate modeling now feed directly into high‑resolution U.S. weather simulations, providing accurate, localized predictions of severe weather like hailstorms and flooding.  Increased lead times inform public‑warning systems and emergency planning, helping residents, schools, utilities, and transportation agencies decide when to shelter, reroute, or shut down before storms hit.

·        NCAR’s wildfire modeling system uses climate trends affecting fuel moisture, drought indicators, wind patterns, temperature and vegetation density to simulate how wildfires spread under emerging climate conditions. These details help planners anticipate where and when large fires are becoming more likely to inform resilience and response strategies.

Dismantling America's Scientific Leadership is a Gift to Competitors

The proposed elimination of NCAR would rapidly accelerate America's decline as a global scientific leader, creating a vacuum that nations like China, which has dramatically increased its scientific spending, are eager to fill.

If the U.S. abandons atmospheric monitoring and research at NCAR:

• other countries will step in to provide the climate data that drives international policy decisions

• the world's top scientists will relocate to better-funded institutions abroad

• America will become dependent on foreign nations for the environmental intelligence needed to protect our own citizens.

We Request Congressional Action to Protect Atmospheric Research to safeguard the National Center for Atmospheric Research and the nation’s atmospheric research capacity:

• Reject any proposal to dismantle or defund NCAR and instead reaffirm its core authorization and public mission in statute.

• Direct federal science agencies to deepen partnerships with NCAR on forecasting, climate resilience, wildfire, and air‑quality research that directly benefit communities in every district.

• Strengthen Congressional oversight to ensure that any restructuring of federal research infrastructure enhances, rather than weakens, U.S. leadership in atmospheric science.

By taking these measures, Congress can ensure we retain and strengthen America’s leadership in atmospheric sciences. Investing in NCAR is a national imperative for a safer, more resilient future.

We appreciate your consideration,

Dan Powers

Executive Director

CO-LABS

dan@co-labs.org

About CO-LABS:

CO-LABS, incorporated in 2007, is a 501(c)3 non-profit consortium of federally funded scientific laboratories, research universities and colleges, business leaders and economic development experts organized to nurture and champion Colorado as a global leader in scientific research, technology, and related commercialization of discoveries. Through lab tours, events, economic analyses, strategic communications and networking activities we work to:

• PROMOTE Colorado’s research ecosystem as a global center in research and technology

• EDUCATE the public about the labs’ impact and importance of sustained funding for research

• CONNECT the labs, universities and businesses to facilitate partnerships and technology transfer