Storms, earthquakes, and other natural disasters shape the physical world where people live and business is conducted. The STCs developing storm and earthquake prediction methods attempt to determine the physical basis of these forces and develop technology to mitigate their effects on the environment. In addition to industry, these centers collaborate with government agencies, policy makers, and emergency preparedness officials. With accurate regional forecasts, commercial airlines, power utilities, and communications providers could save millions of dollars each year in revenues presently lost to weather-related delays or damages. As a result of this model for massively parallel computers, CAPS will take part in an international consortium called Real Applications on Parallel Systems.
Membership includes private sector, government, and university-based groups.
The Center for Clouds, Chemistry, and Climate performs research in areas useful to manufacturers of climate and weather probes, and is developing a new generation of remote sensing instruments that will influence satellite manufactures. The Southern California Earthquake Center provides emergency service officials, public works agencies, and the private sector with improved methodologies for forecasting future earthquakes and their effects on the infrastructure and population of southern California. Information from earth scientists and geotechnical engineers at the center aids in the design of buildings and other structures to make them less vulnerable to earthquakes. Methods and technologies developed by the center can then be applied to other earthquake-prone areas. Improved understanding translates into tremendous savings in damage control and lives.