NA26OARX432C0071↗

PROJECT ABSTRACT SUMMARY FORM PROJECT TITLE: COOPERATIVE INSTITUTE FOR SEVERE AND HIGH-IMPACT WEATHER RESEARCH AND OPERATIONS (CIWRO) PRIMARY CONTACT: GREG MCFARQUHAR, UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA, DIRECTOR CIWRO ADDRESS: 120 DAVID L. BOREN BLVD., NORMAN, OK 73072; PHONE: 405-325-3041; EMAIL: [email protected] PRIMARY RECIPIENT INSTITUTION: UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA (OU) PARTNERS: UNIVERSITY AT ALBANY (UA), HOWARD UNIVERSITY (HU), PENNSYLVANIA STATE UNIVERSITY (PSU), TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY (TTU) PROPOSED BUDGET: $220,000,000 PROPOSED BUDGET PERIOD: OCTOBER 1, 2026 SEPTEMBER 30, 2031 PROJECT SUMMARY: THE COOPERATIVE INSTITUTE FOR SEVERE AND HIGH IMPACT WEATHER RESEARCH AND OPERATIONS (CIWRO), ESTABLISHED IN 2021, EXTENDS COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS BETWEEN NOAA AND OU THAT HAVE EXISTED CONTINUOUSLY SINCE 1978. STARTING IN 2021, CIWRO BECAME A CONSORTIUM WITH THE PARTNERS LISTED ABOVE. CIWRO IS COLLOCATED WITH SEVERAL NOAA RESEARCH LABS (THE NATIONAL SEVERE STORMS LABORATORY NSSL, THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER SPC AND THE OPERATIONS TRAINING UNIT OTU) AT THE NATIONAL WEATHER CENTER (NWC) IN NORMAN, OKLAHOMA AND IS THE LARGEST RESEARCH CENTER AT OU EMPLOYING 227 RESEARCHERS, SUPPORT PERSONNEL AND STUDENTS. CIWRO IS AN INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED CENTER OF EXCELLENCE IN MESOSCALE METEOROLOGY, WEATHER RADAR AND FORECAST IMPROVEMENTS. CIWROS VISION IS TO BE A GLOBAL LEADER IN SEVERE AND HIGH-IMPACT WEATHER RESEARCH, BRIDGING PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN OU, NOAA, AND CONSORTIUM PARTNERS TO TRANSFORM SCIENTIFIC UNDERSTANDING INTO PRODUCTS THAT PROVIDE INNOVATIVE, LIFE-SAVING FORECASTS THAT REDUCE THE IMPACTS OF EXTREME WEATHER ON COMMUNITIES AND ECOSYSTEMS. CIWROS MISSION IS TO FOSTER COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH WITH NOAA ON ISSUES OF SHARED INTEREST, ENHANCING THE UNDERSTANDING OF WEATHER PHENOMENA. BY TRANSITIONING RESEARCH FINDINGS TO OPERATIONAL PRODUCTS, CIWRO IMPROVES WEATHER FORECASTS AND WARNINGS, ULTIMATELY SAVING LIVES, PROTECTING PROPERTY, AND REDUCING THE ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF STORMS. CIWROS RESEARCH FOCUSES ON ADVANCING FUNDAMENTAL KNOWLEDGE OF WEATHER RADAR, MULTI-SCALE PROCESSES, AND SUBSEASONAL TO SEASONAL (S2S) PREDICTIONS. THE TRANSITION OF PRODUCTS TO OPERATIONS SUPPORTS FASTER, MORE ACCURATE, AND VALUABLE WEATHER AND WATER INFORMATION, GUIDING DECISION-MAKING TO MINIMIZE LOSS OF LIFE, INJURY, AND ECONOMIC DAMAGE. CRITICAL TO CIWROS SUCCESS IS THE INTEGRATION OF IMPROVED OBSERVATIONS, MODELING, DATA ASSIMILATION (DA), ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)/MACHINE LEARNING (ML), AND THE STUDY OF SOCIAL AND SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACTS OF HIGH-IMPACT WEATHER. BOTH RESEARCH-TO-OPERATIONS (R2O) AND OPERATIONS-TO-RESEARCH (O2R) PLAY A KEY ROLE. CIWROS MISSION IS CARRIED OUT THROUGH FIVE KEY RESEARCH THEMES: 1) WEATHER RADAR AND OBSERVATION R&D, 2) MESO AND STORM-SCALE MODELING R&D, 3) FORECAST APPLICATIONS IMPROVEMENTS, 4) S2S PREDICTION FOR EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS, AND 5) SOCIAL AND SOCIOECONOMIC IMPACTS OF HIGH-IMPACT WEATHER SYSTEMS. CIWRO IS AN EFFECTIVE BRIDGE BETWEEN OU AND NOAA BY PROMOTING LONG-TERM COLLABORATIONS WITH OU SCIENTISTS PHYSICALLY PRESENT IN NOAA LABORATORIES. CIWRO HAS TRANSITIONED 55 RESEARCH 2 PRODUCTS INTO OPERATIONS SINCE 1 OCT. 2021 AND DEVELOPED SIGNIFICANT RELATIONSHIPS WITH OPERATIONAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE (NWS) OFFICES WITH ONGOING IMPACTS. THIS PROPOSAL SEEKS TO RENEW CIWRO AT OU FOR 2026-2031 TO CONTINUE TO CONDUCT SEVERE AND HIGH-IMPACT WEATHER RESEARCH IN COLLABORATION WITH NOAA AND TO SHARE THAT KNOWLEDGE WITH STAKEHOLDERS. CAPACITY AND CAPABILITIES AT OU AND ITS CONSORTIUM PARTNERS AT HU, PSU, TTU AND UA WILL IMPROVE THE OBSERVATION, ANALYSIS AND UNDERSTANDING OF WEATHER ELEMENTS, S2S FORECASTS, AND FORECAST AND WARNING DECISION-MAKING PROCESSES THROUGH 1) ENHANCED KNOWLEDGE OF PHYSICAL PROCESSES (MESOSCALE AND STORM-SCALE DYNAMICS, ATMOSPHERIC ELECTRICITY, MICROPHYSICS, PLANETARY BOUNDARY LAYER PROCESSES), 2) DEVELOPMENT AND APPLICATION OF OBSERVATIONAL TOOLS [WEATHER RADAR, PROFILERS, MOBILE MESONET, LIDARS, FIELD PROJ

Cooperative Agreement (B) · National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration · to University of Oklahoma (UEI EVTSTTLCEWS5) · data as of 2026-09-30

Source: USAspending.gov prime award transactions and FSRS subaward reports, as loaded by SpendQuery (data as of 2026-09-30). Amounts are obligations (money committed), not outlays. The official record on USAspending.gov ↗