The Trump administration is preparing to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), a federally funded climate and weather research institution based in Boulder, Colorado, according to a report from USA Today.
Why It Matters
President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized climate-focused policy, at times dismissing climate change as a “scam” and “the greatest con job ever perpetuated,” even as scientists and the United Nations warn that climate change is reshaping weather patterns, raising seas, and threatening food production.
If NCAR is dissolved, it could disrupt a major hub of atmospheric and climate research and weaken coordination on efforts to address rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere.
What to Know
NCAR was established in 1960 under the National Science Foundation to support research in areas including atmospheric chemistry and physical meteorology.
USA Today reported that White House officials view the center as a hub for “federal climate alarmism.” The administration is expected to target what it describes as “green new scam research activities” during an upcoming review, while transferring “vital functions”—such as weather modeling and supercomputing—to another entity or location, according to the report.
“The National Science Foundation will be breaking up the National Center for Atmospheric Research,” Russ Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, said in a statement to USA Today.
“This facility is one of the largest sources of climate alarmism in the country. A comprehensive review is underway and any vital activities such as weather research will be moved to another entity or location,” he said.
The administration has already moved to significantly cut parts of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service.
In January, climate science agencies in the United States, United Kingdom, Europe, and Japan confirmed that the previous year was the hottest on record, driven in large part by greenhouse gases—especially carbon dioxide—released through human activity.
What People Are Saying
NCAR says on its website: “We don’t just produce world-class research. We enable others to do their best research, too.”
What Happens Next
Vought said the dissolution process will begin immediately, with plans to fully close the center’s Mesa Laboratory in Boulder.
