About Us
Mission Statement
To advance scientific understanding of the chemical and physical processes that affect Earth's atmospheric composition and climate.
Vision Statement
A nation supported with the best scientific understanding and information about atmospheric chemistry and composition necessary to make optimal decisions for current and future generations.
Strategic Plan
CSL performs research in key societally relevant areas including air quality, climate, and the stratosphere. Discovery, new questions, and stakeholder needs drive CSL research. CSL research informs and improves operational NOAA products and services, results in technology transfer, informs decision makers, contributes to assessments and reports, and delivers an extensive collection of datasets and peer-reviewed publications to the wider scientific community.
Organization
The Chemical Sciences Laboratory (CSL) is one of ten NOAA Research Laboratories located throughout the United States organized under the office of Oceanic & Atmospheric Research (OAR). Our lab is also one of four individual labs that collectively form the Earth System Research Laboratories (ESRL) located within the David Skaggs Research Center (DSRC) in Boulder, Colorado. Within CSL, eight Research Programs serve as the research focal points of the Laboratory.
Our Origins
The history of the NOAA Chemical Sciences Laboratory (CSL) dates back to September 1954 when President Eisenhower dedicated the new U.S. Department of Commerce (USDOC) Boulder Laboratories to house the Central Radio Propagation Laboratory (CRPL). Today, the NOAA Chemical Sciences Laboratory is part of NOAA’s Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) and is one of four laboratories that comprise the NOAA OAR Earth System Research Laboratories (ESRL).
Partnerships
CSL works closely with other Offices, Laboratories, and Programs within NOAA, the University of Colorado Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), and domestic and international universities, research institutions, governmental and non-governmental organizations, as well as stakeholders.
Science Reviews
Laboratory science reviews are conducted periodically to evaluate the quality, relevance, and performance of research conducted in CSL. The reviews are for both internal NOAA OAR use for planning, programming, and budgeting, and external interests.
Diversity & Inclusion
As a laboratory within NOAA OAR, CSL is dedicated to OAR's value to commit to diversity. CSL works with the NOAA OAR Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) / Diversity Program Office to create a diverse workforce that is inclusive and free of discriminatory and retaliatory actions.