Dr. Vanderlei Vargas Jr.
Dr. Vanderlei Vargas Jr.

Research Associate IV – Numerical Weather Prediction Researcher

vanderlei.vargas@noaa.gov


NOAA Global Systems Laboratory
325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305

Room 2B132 – DSRC

Dr. Vanderlei Vargas is an atmospheric scientist with a B.S. in Meteorology and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Atmospheric Science. Based at NOAA’s Global Systems Laboratory (GSL) in Boulder, Dr. Vargas collaborates closely with federal partners, Cooperative Institutes, the Developmental Testbed Center (DTC), NSF NCAR, and other institutions to advance research-to-operations transitions in numerical weather prediction.

As Principal Investigator on several federally funded efforts, Dr. Vargas leads projects and initiatives at CIRA, DTC, and NOAA that bring together observations, modeling, verification, and interdisciplinary science to improve prediction of high-impact weather. These roles involve coordinating multi-institutional teams, guiding technical development, and ensuring that milestones and deliverables align with national priorities.

In addition to project leadership, Dr. Vargas contributes as a technical developer, building verification frameworks, refining model parameterizations, and streamlining workflows for numerical experiments. This work supports the development and evaluation of next-generation forecast systems, enhances ensemble reliability, and accelerates the adoption of research innovations into operations.

Teams:

  • NOAA/Global Systems Laboratory (GSL)
  • Developmental Testbed Center (DTC)