The Earth Prediction Innovation Center (EPIC) participated in the 105th American Meteorological Society (AMS) Annual Meeting from January 12–16, 2025, in New Orleans, LA, in several impactful ways. The Annual Meeting provides a forum for the community to share ideas and experiences on the research and development of Earth system models and their applications in operational forecasting. EPIC’s participation at AMS also fostered collaboration to support the Unified Forecast System (UFS) community.
EPIC kicked off the week on Monday, January 13, by presenting in the Fourth Symposium on Community Modeling and Innovation (4CMI), an initiative spearheaded by the UFS Steering Committee co-chairs and community members from the Weather Enterprise in collaboration with the EPIC Program. Program chairs leading the 4CMI Symposium were Dr. Neil Jacobs (UFS/UCAR), Dr. Hendrik Tolman (NOAA/NWS/OSTI), and Dr. Jose-Henrique Alves (NOAA/OAR/WPO/EPIC). EPIC shared updates on how it integrates and supports community innovations in the UFS.
The symposium brought together top minds in Earth sciences for an energetic exchange of ideas and served as a hub for groundbreaking discussions on the future of forecasting. One of the highlights was a session focused on the Earth Prediction Innovation Center (EPIC) and the Unified Forecast System (UFS). Key presentations included insights from NOAA’s Weather Program Office (WPO) scientists John Ten Hoeve (NOAA/WPO) and Maoyi Huang (NOAA/WPO/EPIC), an update on the EPIC contract from Keven Blackman (EPIC/Raytheon), and a look at EPIC’s past, present, and future from Neil Jacobs. Hendrik Tolman provided an in-depth review of the UFS, sparking great discussions with leaders from the Weather Enterprise.
The symposium also featured sessions dedicated to innovative programs, such as the Consortium for Advanced Data Assimilation Research and Education (CADRE), emphasizing the event’s collaborative spirit. CADRE brings innovative data assimilation research to improve weather forecasting. Another session showcased WPO’s innovation projects, which have created opportunities to accelerate community contributions to NOAA’s operational weather forecasting models.
This year, the symposium hosted its Outstanding Student Presentation Awards for the first time in the categories of oral and poster presentations. First and second place in the oral presentation category were awarded to Suman Shekhar (Rutgers University) and Samantha Lang (North Carolina State University), respectively. Joseph Rotondo (University of Washington) and James Lende (University of Arizona) took first and second place for their poster presentations. The awards recognized student presentations that showcased the next generation of scientific innovations shaping the future of weather and climate prediction. Strong engagement, thought-provoking discussions, and a growing emphasis on community-driven innovation once again made the 4CMI Symposium a key gathering for shaping the future of Earth system modeling.
EPIC also engaged with the community on the exhibit floor with a dedicated station at the RTX booth featuring a rotating set of presentation slides and an overview of the EPIC website. In collaboration with Tomorrow.io, Chris Domanti (EPIC/Raytheon) and Kris Booker (EPIC/Tomorrow.io) participated in a recorded panel discussion about EPIC’s contributions to open development and the program’s efforts in supporting research-to-operations (R2O).
The NOAA booth presentation on Wednesday, January 15, continued the tradition of sharing program perspectives. This included an overview of community success stories from ongoing collaborations and insights into future solutions. EPIC collaborated with the community on abstracts for AMS, demonstrating a shared commitment to advancing UFS capabilities.
We would like to thank everyone from the UFS community who participated in the AMS Annual Meeting! In particular, we would like to recognize the following members of the EPIC Team and the UFS community for their efforts:
EPIC Program Presentations: Jennifer Vogt (NOAA/WPO/EPIC), Maoyi Huang (NOAA/WPO/EPIC), Jan Ising (NOAA/WPO/EPIC), Krishna Kumar (NOAA/WPO/EPIC), John Ten Hoeve (NOAA/WPO), Keven Blackman (EPIC/Raytheon), Wei Huang (EPIC/I2X), Mark Potts (EPIC/Redline), Jong Kim (EPIC/STC), Gillian Petro (EPIC/STC), Cameron Book (EPIC/STC), Kris Booker (EPIC/Tomorrow.io), and Alex Burrows (EPIC/Redline), Anna Kimball (EPIC/Raytheon).
Poster Sessions: Zach Shrader (EPIC/Raytheon) and Aaron Jones (EPIC/Raytheon).
NOAA Booth Presentation: Chris Domanti (EPIC/Raytheon) and Keven Blackman.
RTX Booth Presentation and Demonstration: Aaron Jones, Zach Shrader, Eddie Snyder (EPIC/Raytheon), Keven Blackman, Chris Domanti, Farida Adimi (EPIC/STC), Mark Potts, Jong Kim, Gillian Petro, Alex Burrows, Wei Huang, and Kris Booker.
EPIC Program Partner Presentations: S. Joseph J. Munchak (Tomorrow.io), Ethan Nelson (Tomorrow.io), Brandon Mason Taylor (Tomorrow.io), Forest Cannon (Tomorrow.io), Simon Pfreundschuh (Tomorrow.io), Stylianos Flampouris (Tomorrow.io), Kristopher Booker (EPIC/Tomorrow.io), Jonathon Guerrette (Tomorrow.io), Ryan Honeyager (Tomorrow.io), Mariah Pope (EPIC/Tomorrow.io), Maxfield Green (Tomorrow.io), Ashley Elizabeth Payne (Tomorrow.io), Arun Chawla (Tomorrow.io).
EPIC is grateful for all the discussions with the community and partner organizations that allow the program to grow with the UFS. The team looks forward to hosting our next big event, the Unifying Innovations in Forecasting Capabilities Workshop (UIFCW) at UCAR Center Green (Boulder, CO) from September 8–12, 2025, and we enthusiastically anticipate our return to the 106th AMS Annual Meeting next year!
Acronym List:
- 4CMI – Fourth Symposium on Community Modeling and Innovation
- AMS – American Meteorological Society
- CADRE – Consortium for Advanced Data Assimilation Research and Education
- DTC – Developmental Testbed Center
- EPIC – Earth Prediction Innovation Center
- I2X – Innovation and Integration Experiment
- NCAR – National Center for Atmospheric Research
- NOAA – National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- NWS – National Weather Service
- OAR – Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research
- OSTI – Office of Science and Technology Integration
- R2O – Research to Operations
- RTX – Raytheon Technologies
- STC – Science and Technology Corporation
- UCAR – University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
- UFS – Unified Forecast System
- UIFCW – Unifying Innovations in Forecasting Capabilities Workshop
- WPO – Weather Program Office
