Jobs / Science and research / 19-2021.00
Atmospheric and Space Scientists
Investigate atmospheric phenomena and interpret meteorological data, gathered by surface and air stations, satellites, and radar to prepare reports and forecasts for public and other uses. Includes weather analysts and forecasters whose functions require the detailed knowledge of meteorology.
- US jobs
- 10,000
- Median wage
- $99,070 a year
- Job family
- Science and research
Can agents do the work of atmospheric and space scientists?
We read the evidence at the level of the job family, Science and research:
- Task levelPartialThin evidence. CORE-Bench asks agents to reproduce the results of published papers in computer science, social science, and medicine from the authors' code and data. Princeton's HAL team declared it solved in December 2025: Claude Code with Claude Opus 4.5 scored 95.5% after manual regrading. No benchmark in our collection tests new experiments or lab work.
- Project levelNot yetThin evidence. On PaperBench, where agents replicate machine learning papers from scratch, the best official result is 26.0% (o1, April 2025). On a small subset, ML PhDs scored 41.4% against o1's 26.6%. No newer official results exist, and no benchmark tests research projects in other sciences.
Benchmarks for the job family
These cover work in science and research, not always this occupation's tasks.
- 95.5%Claude Code + Claude Opus 4.5 (after manual regrading) · 3 Dec 2025Solved
Typical tasks
From O*NET 31.0. Core tasks first. Few of these tasks have a benchmark today.
- Develop or use mathematical or computer models for weather forecasting.
- Interpret data, reports, maps, photographs, or charts to predict long- or short-range weather conditions, using computer models and knowledge of climate theory, physics, and mathematics.
- Conduct meteorological research into the processes or determinants of atmospheric phenomena, weather, or climate.
- Formulate predictions by interpreting environmental data, such as meteorological, atmospheric, oceanic, paleoclimate, climate, or related information.
- Broadcast weather conditions, forecasts, or severe weather warnings to the public via television, radio, or the Internet or provide this information to the news media.
- Prepare forecasts or briefings to meet the needs of industry, business, government, or other groups.
- Gather data from sources such as surface or upper air stations, satellites, weather bureaus, or radar for use in meteorological reports or forecasts.
- Develop computer programs to collect meteorological data or to present meteorological information.
- Prepare weather reports or maps for analysis, distribution, or use in weather broadcasts, using computer graphics.
- Develop and deliver training on weather topics.
- Prepare scientific atmospheric or climate reports, articles, or texts.
- Analyze climate data sets, using techniques such as geophysical fluid dynamics, data assimilation, or numerical modeling.
Other job titles for this occupation (38)
Broadcast Meteorologist · Forecaster · General Forecaster · Hydrometeorological Technician (Hydrometeorological Tech) · Meteorologist · Ocean Monitoring and Data Assimilation Scientist · Research Meteorologist · Service Hydrologist · Warning Coordination Meteorologist · Weather Forecaster · Aerologist · Air Analyst · Astrochemist · Atmospheric Chemist · Atmospheric Scientist · Climate Change Risk Assessor · Climatologist · Computer Meteorologist · Hurricane Tracker · Hydrometeorologist · Marine Meteorologist · Meteorological Engineer · Meteorological Technician (Meteorological Tech) · Morning Meteorologist · Oceanographic Meteorologist · Operational Meteorologist · Physical Meteorologist · Radiosonde Specialist · Space Operations Officer · Space Scientist · Storm Chaser · Synoptic Meteorologist · Tornado Chaser · Tracker · Weather Analyst · Weather Anchor · Weatherization Specialist · Weatherman