Overview
- OMB Director Russell Vought labeled NCAR a source of “climate alarmism” and said a comprehensive review is underway with vital activities potentially reassigned.
- New reporting highlights space-science stakes, with NCAR scientists leading NASA’s CMEx and STRUVE heliophysics missions and partnering on the COSMIC-2 weather data program.
- UCAR President Antonio Busalacchi said the directive arrived without specifics, noting NSF only issued a vague “Dear Colleague” solicitation on NCAR’s future.
- More than 70 lawmakers signed a Dec. 22 letter urging appropriators to maintain sustained funding for NCAR, citing national competitiveness and operational needs.
- Data and advocacy groups published an open letter warning that dismantling NCAR would degrade forecasting and public safety and drive up costs by duplicating capabilities, as the administration’s FY2026 plan also proposes a roughly 40% cut.