26-120 Numerical Weather and Earth System Prediction Developer

csusystem; Boulder (CO); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Colorado State University’s Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA) seeks a full-time research associate to advance NOAA/EPAD modeling efforts at the GSL in Boulder, CO. The role focuses on leading numerical weather and Earth system prediction code development and porting to cloud computing architectures.

The position emphasizes collaboration with model, infrastructure, and physics teams to improve computational efficiency while maintaining scientific robustness.

Qualifications

• MS in Atmospheric Science, Computer Science, or related field.
• At least two years of specialized technical experience developing, building infrastructure to support, and/or maintaining Earth system models.
• At least three years of experience with Fortran and/or C++, Python, high-performance computing (HPC).

Responsibilities

• Be a technical lead for numerical weather and Earth system prediction system development, including leading and assisting with the technical implementation of new and revised modeling capabilities, infrastructure, and workflows.
• Port modeling system codes in support of numerical weather and Earth system prediction systems to NOAA research, development, and operational cloud-computing architectures.
• In collaboration with model, infrastructure, and physics parameterization developers, develop and implement code optimizations that reduce computational expense while maintaining scientific quality.
• Lead the code management of the model, infrastructure, and physics parameterization codes for which GSL is the lead developing entity.

Skills

Fortran

C++

Python

High-Performance Computing

Education

MS in Atmospheric Science or Computer Science or related field

Job description

Job Description

The Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA) at Colorado State University (CSU) seeks to fill a full-time research associate position designed to conduct collaborative research and development with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) located at the Global Systems Laboratory (GSL) in Boulder, CO. The individual in this position will work in the NOAA/OAR/GSL Earth Prediction Advancement Division (EPAD) Physics Branch.

The Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere at Colorado State University is a multi-million-dollar research organization located on CSU's Foothills Campus in Fort Collins, Colorado. CIRA is a cooperative institute that is also a research department within CSU's College of Engineering, in partnership with the Department of Atmospheric Science. Its vision is to conduct interdisciplinary research in the atmospheric sciences by entraining skills beyond the meteorological disciplines, exploiting advances in engineering and computer science, facilitating transitional activity between pure and applied research, leveraging both national and international resources and partnerships, and assisting the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, CSU, the State of Colorado, and the Nation through the application of our research to areas of societal benefit.

NOAA's Global Systems Laboratory is a federal science and research laboratory under NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research. GSL provides the National Weather Service (NWS) and the nation with environmental observation, prediction, computer, visualization, and information systems. These systems deliver data, forecasts, and predictions of weather, including severe weather events, within the next few minutes to weeks away. GSL is a leader in the applied research, directed development, and technology transfer of environmental data, models, products, and services that enhance environmental understanding with the outcome of supporting commerce, protecting life and property, and promoting a scientifically literate public.

Position Summary:

The individual in this position will be a technical lead for numerical weather and Earth system prediction model development in the context of NOAA's Unified Forecast System (UFS) leveraging the Model for Prediction Across Scales (MPAS) atmospheric dynamical core. They will lead and assist the implementation of new and revised modeling capabilities, infrastructure, and workflows. A particular focus will be on porting modeling system codes to future NOAA research, development, and operational cloud-computing architectures. The individual in this position will also play a leading role in optimizing modeling system components to improve their computational efficiency while maintaining their scientific robustness and in managing the code bases for which GSL - and specifically Physics branch members - are the lead developers and maintainers. This position will report to the Ensemble Prediction Scientist.

Full Consideration Date: Monday, 9/28/2026, 11:59 pm (MT)

Essential Job Duties:

• Be a technical lead for numerical weather and Earth system prediction system development, including leading and assisting with the technical implementation of new and revised modeling capabilities, infrastructure, and workflows.
• Port modeling system codes in support of numerical weather and Earth system prediction systems to NOAA research, development, and operational cloud-computing architectures.
• In collaboration with model, infrastructure, and physics parameterization developers, develop and implement code optimizations that reduce computational expense while maintaining scientific quality.
• Lead the code management of the model, infrastructure, and physics parameterization codes for which GSL is the lead developing entity.

Conditions of Employment:

• Initially, this position will require onsite presence. If project circumstances allow and with satisfactory performance, up to 2 days per week of telework may be allowed.
• This full-time position requires a National Agency Check with Inquiries (NACI), tier 1 federal background check and a NOAA Common Access Card (CAC) ID badge for systems access. Therefore, only US citizens and lawful permanent residents with a physical USCIS "Green Card" are eligible.

Supervision:

The individual in this position will not supervise employees.

Required Qualifications:

NOTE: In the body of your resume, please specifically address all required qualifications when describing your work experience. A resume that fails to specifically address the qualifications of this position may not be further considered by the search committee.

• A M.S. in Atmospheric Science, Computer Science, or related field and
• At least two years of specialized technical experience developing, building infrastructure to support, and/or maintaining Earth system models.
• At least three years of experience with Fortran and/or C++, Python, high-performance computing (c