Who We Are
NCEI is the Nation’s leading authority for environmental data. We manage one of the largest archives of atmospheric, coastal, geophysical, and oceanic research in the world. NCEI contributes to the NESDIS mission by developing new products and services that span the science disciplines and enable better data discovery.
Why It Matters
NCEI helps NOAA meet the growing need for high value data by supporting projects like the Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act, NOAA's Blue Economy, and Climate-Ready Nation Initiatives. Our stewardship practices maximize the organization’s investment in environmental research, converting scientific insights into dynamic, usable information that inform strategy and decision making in government, academia, and the private sector.
As the Nation’s treasure of earth observations grows, our scientists ensure that analyses, methods and data sets evolve along with that growth. Our engagement professionals ensure that our partner agencies and the public get the information they need, when they need it, in a way they can efficiently use it.
Together with our data providers, data users, and our partners, NCEI builds and draws lasting value from NOAA’s and the world's observations from the seafloor to the surface of the sun. Our work informs a nation that is more prosperous, more resilient and more just.
Data in Action
NCEI data helps businesses and organizations across sectors operate more efficiently, safely, environmentally, and economically.
Data Management
The NCEI archive and backup copy contains more than 52 petabytes of data, equivalent to about 400 million filing cabinets filled with documents. NCEI Archive
Sectors and Industry
Our data and the tools we build with it are used to address specific challenges and use cases in agriculture, transportation, retail, legal services, energy, insurance, and other societal sectors. Our Impact
Products
NCEI offers users access to a wealth of Environmental Information captured in over 26,000 datasets among 1,200 pages.
NCEI Leadership
Deke Arndt
Director
Deke Arndt became NCEI's Director on January 30, 2023. He served as Chief of NCEI's Climatic Science and Services Division (CSSD) for three years after previously leading the CSSD Monitoring Section. Deke’s career began in 1996 at the Oklahoma Climatological Survey. He worked closely with public safety, agriculture, climate monitoring, and the energy generation and transmission sectors. In recent years, he served on the Council of the American Meteorological Society, was a co-lead editor of the AMS's annual State of the Climate report, and co-chaired the US Global Change Research Program's Interagency Indicators Working Group.
Joe Pica
Deputy Director
Joe Pica assumed the role of NCEI Deputy Director in 2018 after a three-year stint as Director of the National Weather Service (NWS) Office of Observations. There he oversaw data collection operations to ensure accurate, comprehensive national forecasts. Before joining the NWS, Joe served as Commanding Officer of both the Ronald H. Brown and the Okeanos Explorer, respectively the flagship and most technologically advanced vessels in the NOAA fleet. Between sea assignments, he brought operational, technical, and leadership skills to a variety of shore assignments including Deputy Director of the former National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC) and Executive Director to the Deputy Under Secretary for Operations.
Scott Hausman
Chief, Information Technology Services Division
Scott Hausman became Chief of NCEI IT services in 2017 after two years as Director of NCEI Data Stewardship. Dr. Hausman previously served as Acting Director and Deputy Director of the former National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) and as the Director of the Global Systems Division of the Earth Systems Research Laboratory (ESRL). His 24-year career with the U.S. Air Force included command of the 14th Weather Squadron providing climatological support to the Department of Defense, intelligence community, and other federal agencies.
Eric Kihn
Chief, Oceanographic and Geophysical Science and Services Division
Eric Kihn is the Chief of the Oceanographic and Geophysical Science and Services Division since 2018. He previously served as acting Director of the NGDC. Over more than 25 years of NOAA service, he led as a researcher, group leader, and professional data manager whose efforts contributed to two award-winning analytic systems in the Space Physics Interactive Data Resource and the Environmental Scenario Generator, and the development of projects like Space Weather Analysis (SWA). He heads the World Data Service for Geophysics and actively contributes to the Earth System Information Partners professional organization.
Jen Mootz
Chief, Support Services Division
Jen Mootz is the chief of NCEI’s Support Services Division. She possesses more than twenty years of experience, including strategic planning, business process management and improvement, performance management, and resource management. She worked at all echelons of the Department of Defense in both the continental United States and overseas. She serves as an examiner for the Malcolm Baldrige Award for Performance Excellence since 2008 - helping private and public sectors across all industries deliver value to their customers and stakeholders and realize their performance improvement goals.
Monica Youngman
Chief, Data Stewardship Division
Monica Youngman joined NCEI as Data Stewardship Division Chief in 2018 to manage the growing archive of environmental data under NCEI care. With more than a decade of experience at NOAA, she led substantial, complex data stewardship operations and improvements, managing data collection, software development, metadata management, archival processes, and data delivery. Prior to joining NCEI, she led NOAA's National Geodetic Surveys multi-million dollar Gravity Program, leading the data collection and analysis for a new American vertical datum.
Locations
NCEI has four national locations, as well as regional centers, field sites, and cooperative institutes throughout the country.
Asheville, North Carolina
Boulder, Colorado
Silver Spring, Maryland
Stennis Space Center, MS
Learn More
News
There’s a lot going on at NCEI. Visit our news page to learn more about our organization and the Earth’s climate, oceans, coasts, and geophysics.
World Data System at NCEI
NCEI hosts World Data Centers and Services as a member of the ICSU World Data System, a collaborative effort to ensure universal, equitable access to environmental data around the world.
NCEI Cooperative Institutes
NOAA partners with academic and nonprofit institutions throughout the country to conduct collaborative research, connect with scientific communities, and sponsor student fellowships.
