Career
Atmospheric and space scientists
Study the weather and the atmosphere.
$99,070
Median pay
+2.6%
Job growth, 2025–35
800
Openings a year
Bachelor's degree
Typical education
4 years
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- 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.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on ideas & analysis, then objects & tools?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Develop or use mathematical or computer models for weather forecasting.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, Critical Thinking.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
4 years of education after high school (bachelor's degree), for a median of $99,070 a year and 800 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Climate ScienceCIP 30.3501
- Mathematics and Atmospheric/Oceanic ScienceCIP 30.5001
- Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, GeneralCIP 40.0401
- Atmospheric Chemistry and ClimatologyCIP 40.0402
- Atmospheric Physics and DynamicsCIP 40.0403
- MeteorologyCIP 40.0404
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Hydrologists$96,600 · +1.5%
- Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers$101,920 · +5.1%
- Remote Sensing Scientists and Technologists
- Data Scientists$120,230 · +34.6%
- Geographic Information Systems Technologists and Technicians
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.