# Presentation: 921012

## NWS Climate Services Workshop

- July 8-9, 2003
- Kansas City, MO

## The NOAA Regional Climate Center Program

## The Midwestern Regional Climate Center

- National Climatic Data Center
- Regional Climate Centers
- State Climate Offices
- National Weather Service

- A partner of a national climate service program that includes the

## Goals and Objectives

- Increase value and usage of currently available climatic information
- Coordinate data from regional and state data networks
- Develop special and regional climate databases
- Serve as a clearinghouse for climate information
- Operate near real-time climate information systems
- Plan, organize, and conduct applied climate research
- Perform educational, extension-type programs

## History of the RCCs

- Program developed in response to mandate in National Climate Program Act of 1978
- Three demonstration projects operated 1981-1986
- Congress appropriated funds beginning in 1986 to fund regional climate centers

**Notes:**
Mandate: to improve use and dissemination of climatic data and information for the economic benefit and well-being of the U.S.
Concept developed by agricultural scientists and climatologists who were members of two regional agricultural committees. Three demonstration projects were funded between 1981 and 1986 (Northeast, ISWS, Univ. Nebraska). 

## History of the RCCs

- Western RCC - 1987
- Desert Research Institute
- Midwestern RCC - 1988
- Illinois State Water Survey
- High Plains RCC - 1988
- University of Nebraska
- Northeast RCC – 1989
- Cornell University
- Southeast RCC – 1990
- South Carolina Water Resources Commission
- Southern RCC – 1990
- Louisiana State University

## Regional Climate Centers

**Regional Climate Centers**

## History of the RCCs

- National Climate Program Office 1988-1991
- National Weather Service 1991-1997
- In 1997 program was integrated with the National Climatic Data Center

- Program Management

## RCC Structure

- Director
- Regional Climatologist
- Research Climatologist(s)
- Service Climatologists
- IT Systems Administrator
- Other support staff

## Agriculture
Climate change
Energy
Environment

**Champaign, IL**

**M**

**R**

**C**

**C**

- Agriculture
- Climate change
- Energy
- Environment

- Human health
- Risk management
- Transportation
- Water resources

- Serves the nine-state Midwest region with climate data, information, and applied research on climate-sensitive issues such as:

## Major Activities of the MRCC

- Climate services
- Monitoring of climate conditions (particularly extremes)
- Assessment of climate impacts
- Applied research and development
- Data assessment

## Who are the users of the MRCC?

## Offline Requests

## Slide 14

## Slide 15

## MICIS

- Midwestern Climate Information System

## Slide 17

## Slide 18

## RCC/NWS Partnership

- Quality data is the foundation of everything we do!

## RCC/NWS Partnership

- Improve quantity of Coop data ingested in near real time
- Implement web entry of daily coop data (e.g. Weather Coder)
- Access to data by RCCs for use in monitoring and products
- Improve quality of Coop data
- Monitor observer performance
- Work with RCCs and SCs to resolve data quality issues (observer or system based)

## RCC/NWS Partnership

- RCCs are a comprehensive regional resource of climate data, climate products, and climate information
- RCCs set up to handle routine (and non-routine) climate data requests
- NWS access to online systems
- Resources available to assist NWS CFPs in the development of downscaling products
- Cooperative studies

**Notes:**
RCCs monitor regional climate

## http://mrcc.sws.uiuc.edu