Ralph Cicerone pictured at NCAR in the 1980s. (©UCAR. Photo by Ginger Hein. This image is freely available for media & nonprofit use.)

The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) join colleagues in the Earth system science community and beyond in mourning the loss of renowned atmospheric scientist Ralph J. Cicerone, who died on Nov. 5.

Dr. Cicerone left his job as a research chemist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1980 to join NCAR, where he led the Atmospheric Chemistry Division. In 1989, Dr. Cicerone took on a new challenge, accepting an offer to build an interdisciplinary department of geosciences at the University of California, Irvine.  

"Ralph was a pioneer in thinking about the Earth as a connected system," said UCAR President Antonio J. Busalacchi. "His willingness to work across disciplines in pursuit of a deeper understanding of how the pieces of the Earth system fit together set an example for atmospheric scientists and helped set the research direction for our community as well as the whole of the National Academy of Sciences. His loss will be deeply felt at NCAR, UCAR, and far beyond."

Read Dr. Cicerone's full obituary at the National Academy of Sciences webpage. 

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