[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 133 (Wednesday, September 29, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Page S7752]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            UNIVERSITY CORPORATION FOR ATMOSPHERIC RESEARCH

Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, today I congratulate the 
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research--UCAR--on the 50th 
anniversary of its founding in Boulder, CO. As the world's premier 
atmospheric science hub, UCAR has been on the cutting edge of research 
and innovation for half a century. They have made invaluable 
contributions to our knowledge and understanding of the world's 
atmosphere and weather and climate systems.
  At its inception, UCAR was a consortium of 14 universities dedicated 
to the simple hypothesis that university atmospheric science could be 
more effective through collaborative efforts. UCAR set about improving 
national coordination, funding, and basic support for the then 
burgeoning field of atmospheric research.
  Since then, with invaluable Federal support from the National Science 
Foundation, UCAR has grown to a consortium of 75 universities, 
including the University of Colorado, Colorado State University, and 
the University of Denver. Similarly, the National Center for 
Atmospheric Research, NCAR, which is the research institute operated by 
UCAR, has grown from five full-time scientists to 220 Ph.D. researchers 
today.
  UCAR established three main goals for itself in order to understand 
the behavior of the atmosphere and related physical, biological and 
social systems. These goals remain at the heart of their efforts today.
  First, NCAR was to be an intellectual center cultivating world-class 
basic science in-house and through cooperative work with scientists 
from other institutions in the United States, Canada, and abroad.
  Second, UCAR was to become a planning center where the world's 
leading atmospheric science experts could gather to discuss and 
determine the most promising strategies for understanding the major 
problems of atmospheric science.
  Lastly, UCAR would provide and operate the research facilities needed 
for atmospheric science when those facilities were too large, 
expensive, or complicated for a single university or research 
institution to manage by itself.
  By meeting these goals every day, UCAR has made itself an undeniable 
global leader in climate science.
  As you drive west on U.S. Highway 36 near Louisville, CO, you start 
to climb Davidson Mesa. Just as you crest the mesa, you come upon an 
extraordinary scene: the foothills of the Rocky Mountains stretched out 
on the horizon before you with the city of Boulder below. Off to your 
left, perched on a hilltop beneath the majestic Flatirons, is UCAR's 
Mesa lab, housed in a pink sandstone, I.M. Pei-designed building. This 
sight never ceases to impress. That you are looking at the world's 
leading atmospheric research center is even more astounding.
  I am proud to represent a State with such a talented and dedicated 
organization. They have helped make Colorado a leader in science and 
technology. They have been instrumental in educating the public on the 
science of climate change and informing our response to it. And they 
are helping create and inspire the next generations of scientists and 
engineers to tackle the unanswered questions of their time.
  Again, I offer my sincere congratulations to UCAR and look forward to 
the next 50 years of discovery.

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