EUROPEAN CENTRE FOR MEDIUM-RANGE WEATHER FORECASTS

Their core work

ECMWF is an intergovernmental organization that produces global weather forecasts, climate reanalyses, and atmospheric monitoring services used by national meteorological agencies across Europe and beyond. They operate some of the world's most powerful supercomputers dedicated to weather and climate simulation, and are a key implementing entity for the EU's Copernicus Earth observation programme. Their H2020 work focuses on pushing weather and climate models to exascale computing, improving ocean and atmospheric observation systems, and delivering operational climate services to governments and industry.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the early H2020 period (2014–2017), ECMWF focused heavily on ocean observing systems, marine forecasting, and atmospheric monitoring — projects like AtlantOS, MyOcean FO, and MACC-III reflect their operational Copernicus role. From 2017 onward, their portfolio shifted decisively toward exascale computing, with repeated investments in HPC scalability, heterogeneous architectures, and programming models (ESCAPE-2, ESiWACE2, EuroEXA, EPiGRAM-HS). The keyword data confirms this: early terms center on "ocean," "Atlantic," and "fisheries," while recent terms are dominated by "exascale," "HPC," "scalability," and "data processing."

ECMWF is investing heavily in preparing its weather and climate models for next-generation exascale supercomputers, making them an ideal partner for any project combining HPC innovation with Earth system science.

How they like to work

ECMWF primarily operates as a strong participant (38 of 45 projects), joining large European consortia where they contribute domain-specific weather/climate modelling and HPC expertise. When they coordinate (7 projects), it is in areas where they hold clear leadership — atmospheric monitoring (MACC-III, CHE) and exascale weather algorithms (ESCAPE series). With 516 unique partners across 48 countries, they function as a high-connectivity hub, making them easy to approach and well-connected for consortium building.

ECMWF has collaborated with 516 distinct partners across 48 countries, making them one of the most broadly networked organizations in European weather and climate research. Their partnerships span national meteorological services, HPC centres, universities, and space agencies across all of Europe and beyond.

What sets them apart

ECMWF occupies a unique position at the intersection of operational weather forecasting and supercomputing research — very few organizations combine deep domain expertise in Earth system science with hands-on experience running some of the largest HPC systems in Europe. As an intergovernmental body (not a university or company), they bring institutional neutrality and long-term operational commitment that makes them a trusted anchor partner. Their dual role as both a Copernicus service provider and an HPC innovation driver means they can bridge the gap between scientific research and operational deployment like almost no one else.

Highlights from their portfolio

• MACC-III
  Coordinated with EUR 1.19M — ECMWF's flagship atmospheric monitoring project that directly feeds the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service they operate.
• ESCAPE-2
  Coordinated sequel to ESCAPE, representing ECMWF's sustained leadership in developing exascale-ready weather prediction algorithms — a multi-year strategic investment.
• PRIMAVERA
  Largest single funding (EUR 1.19M as participant) for high-resolution climate modelling, reflecting ECMWF's core strength in pushing model resolution boundaries.