Interacting with energy: a summary of user engagement activities of the energy industry at NOAA's national climatic data center

The Energy Industry is one of the broadest economic industries in the United States. A capital intensive industry by nature, virtually every sector of the Energy Industry is affected by weather, as well as climate variability and change. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA's) National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) is the world's largest source of weather and climate data, and not surprisingly, energy interests have been one of our largest groups of patrons for many years. In recent years, NCDC has been transitioning from more limited service-based interactions with user industries – including energy – toward a full-scale proactive engagement. The main goal of these renewed efforts at interactions is to not only respond to user needs, but to anticipate user needs. This is critical at this moment in time due to (1) industry uncertainty due to climate change and (2) the nation's long-term transition to a “new energy economy.” Here, we summarize our recent and ongoing efforts to engage the Energy Industry.