WPO’s Portfolio Analysis and Research Transitions (PART) Program is proud to announce the launch of SPARK 3.0—the System for Public Access to Research Knowledge—expanding the platform’s capabilities and broadening access to WPO’s research portfolio.
Previously, SPARK featured only projects from WPO’s Science, Technology, and Society Division. The latest update expands coverage across the entire office, adding research from the Earth System Research and Modeling Division and the Observations and Research Support Division. It also offers an improved user experience, making it easier to filter, explore, and discover projects in just a few clicks.
That means users can now explore more than 500 physical and social science projects; apply customizable filters like hazard type, topic area, and division; and dive into detailed project information—all in one centralized place.
“Expanding SPARK across WPO provides the Weather Enterprise and the public with the most complete view of our R&D portfolio,” says Dr. Gina Eosco, Director of WPO. “Increased transparency sparks new opportunities, uncovers gaps, and moves our funded research into the hands of those who can apply it to improve weather forecasts and meet public needs.”
SPARK complements WPO’s new REACH tool. While REACH connects users directly to research outputs like publications, data, and code, SPARK focuses on the big-picture details—who’s doing the work, where it’s happening, when it’s funded, and what the research is about. SPARK also shows how many outputs are tied to each project and links back to REACH so users can explore them in more depth. Together, they provide a full-spectrum view of WPO-funded research from project to results.
WPO would like to extend a huge thanks to OAR’s IT Management Office and the web development team at OAR’s Climate Program Office, who brought the original code into the WordPress environment and led the implementation. Their crucial work focused on building the parts of the site that users see and interact with, improving accessibility, and making sure the site runs smoothly for a wide range of users. Their dedication has significantly helped advance our open science mission and make WPO’s research more discoverable to the Weather Enterprise and the public.
Explore SPARK 3.0 today and see the breadth of innovation driving NOAA’s mission forward.
This story was published on March 18, 2026.
