Effective October 1, the Department of Energy’s Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program and Atmospheric Science Program will be merged and managed under a new name, Atmospheric System Research. A major benefit of the merger is expected to be a strengthening of the programs by bringing together ARM expertise in continuous remote sensing measurements of cloud properties and aerosol influences on radiation with the ASP expertise for in situ characterization of aerosol properties, evolution and cloud interactions. This merger does not affect the organization or management of the ARM Climate Research Facility.

Discussions and planning are underway to bring the research elements of the two programs into better alignment to further the common research goal of understanding the climate system and representing this understanding in models. In parallel, the Science Plan for the new Atmospheric System Research program is in preparation.