What is NCAS

The National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS) is a world leader in atmospheric science.

With an annual budget of £9M we carry out research programmes on:

• • The science of climate change, including modelling and predictions
  • Atmospheric composition, including air quality
  • Weather, including hazardous weather
  • Technologies for observing and modelling the atmosphere

Additionally, we provide scientific facilities for researchers right across the UK to enable excellent atmospheric science on a national scale. These include a world-leading research aircraft, a ground-based instrumentation pool, access to computer models and facilities for storing and accessing data. In a nutshell, we provide the UK academic community and the Natural Environment Research Council with national capability in atmospheric science.

We communicate our findings and knowledge for the benefit of policy-makers, other scientists and the general public.

The National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS) is one of the Natural Environment Research Council's (NERC) research centres. The Centre increases knowledge of key environmental issues including: climate change, weather processes and atmospheric composition including air quality.  By its very nature, atmospheric science research is multi-disciplinary, bringing together scientists from a range of core disciplines such as physics, chemistry and mathematics. NCAS has a structure based on science directorates and technology divisions emphasising science applications, which naturally work across NCAS as a whole encouraging multi-disciplinary research and co-operation.

 It uses state-of-the-art technologies for observing and modelling the atmosphere and its research is used by policy makers and the wider UK science base.

NCAS is not based in one location. It is made up three science directorates (climate; weather; atmospheric composition) and four services and facilities distributed across many UK universities and related institutions.

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Read more about the History of NCAS.