Walter Orr Roberts

Building HAO, NCAR, and a Foundation for Scientific Innovation in Boulder

View of Boulder from Bear Peak.

Boulder, Colorado

Boulder home to scientific innovation

Boulder is now home to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in addition to NCAR and NIST, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory is in nearby Golden. Since Roberts first requested that NCAR headquarters reside in Boulder, dozens of science and technology companies and research firms have set up shop in the region. (image credit: https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11297782)

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Home High Altitude Observatory National Center for Atmospheric Research
University of Colorado at Boulder Boulder, Colorado Writings and Achievements

Walter Orr Roberts was a renowned scientist, leader, and pioneer in the fields of solar-terrestrial study, astronomy, and climate science. He established and directed the High Altitude Observatory (HAO); founded the Department of Astro-Geophysics at the University of Colorado-Boulder (CU-Boulder); served as the first director of the National Center for Atmopheric Research (NCAR); the first president of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR), and led the Program on Food, Climate, and the World’s Future at the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies. He was a tireless advocate for an active response to climate change, international scientific collaboration, and science education. Beyond these individual accomplishments, he built a scientific community in Boulder, creating long-lasting partnerships, including those between NCAR, HAO, and CU-Boulder that continue to grow and thrive today.

This exhibit brings together material from the NCAR Archives and the Special Collections, Archives, and Preservation at the University of Colorado Boulder Libraries to tell the story of Walter Orr Roberts and his significant impact on the institutions he was involved with, and his lasting legacy in the scientific enterprise.