In July 2026, CADRE students and post-doc scientists spent two weeks at either Boulder, CO (to visit NOAA Global Systems Laboratory [GSL] and Physical Sciences Laboratory [PSL], National Center for Atmospheric Research [NCAR] and Joint Center for Satellite Data Assimilation [JCSDA]; right) or College Park, MD (to visit NOAA Office of Modeling and Development [OMD]; left).
The visits included a packed agenda of presentations by CADRE students and postdoc scientists, talks by NOAA, NCAR and JCSDA scientists, social/networking events, and time to work with NOAA collaborators to advance CADRE research and to accelerate the transition of CADRE research to NOAA operations.
Summary of College Park Visit:
A CADRE workshop was held during the visit, where each CADRE student presented their research to the data assimilation (DA) Division of OMD. CADRE students also attended career talks from senior staff, regular OMD-DA meetings, day-long coworking sprints, and seminar series hosted by the OMD GFS, RRFS, HAFS teams, and the NESDIS-STAR.
A variety of fun, educational, and career-development activities were arranged during this visit.
During a side-trip to an NWS WFO, the students had an opportunity to learn about operational forecasting considerations, watch a sonde launch, and perform a practical exercise to assess how the sonde data was used in the operational GFS. Tours of the WPC, OTC and NESDIS operations floor in the NCWCP were also provided. A pizza social and happy hours provided additional socializing and networking opportunities, including with OMD staff.
The visit was highlighted in an NWS Insider article.
Summary of Boulder Visit:
CADRE students and postdoc scientists presented their research and development during their visits to the NOAA OAR labs in Boulder. NOAA Boulder scientists also gave talks to facilitate scientific exchange. Their presentations and in-person discussions paved the way for ongoing and future adoption of CADRE research into NOAA operations. NOAA collaborators especially compliment CADRE’s efforts in adopting the same JEDI and MPAS software systems used by NOAA for their research and development, which expedited the R2O.
In addition to the NOAA lab visits, visits to NCAR and JCSDA were also arranged. The one-day long visit to JCSDA included presentations and practical exercises with JEDI. The visit to NCAR included lunch and meetings with the data assimilation teams in Data Assimilation Research Section (DAReS) and Microscale and Mesoscale Meteorology Laboratory (MMM).
Summary of feedback from CADRE students and postdoc scientists:
CADRE students returned from their visits with enthusiastically positive feedback. Students appreciated direct involvement and collaboration of NOAA scientists in their research. Students also appreciated gaining a deeper understanding of NOAA modeling systems, including both development and operational perspectives, experiencing guided hands-on practice with specific JEDI and UFS components, and having opportunities to meet and network with scientists more broadly than just their direct collaborators. Students felt that their research progress was directly accelerated by the visit and also enjoyed gaining the longer-term career development information.
