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Research facility · Redmond · United States

Northwest Research Associates

In research, Northwest Research Associates stands highest in Physical Sciences (#3,760 of 10,670 worldwide), 2022-now. Relative to its size it is most specialised in Earth and Planetary Sciences (Earth and Planetary Sciences is 20.5× its share of world research).

nwra.comROR OpenAlex
World rank, 2022-now
#14,151
of 22,385 · #4,333 all time
Rank in United States
#1,995
of 3,332
Research works
904
▼ 34% vs 2018-21
Citations
34k
37.7 per fractional work
Top-10% rate
10.8%
all institutions 10.0%
vs its own fields
1.01×
1.00× is exactly expected
Open access
41%
world 40%
International
23%
world 18%
Northwest Research Associates

What is Northwest Research Associates known for in research?

The fields where it stands highest, 2022-now, ranked among every institution above the floor in each field.

FieldWorld rankWhere that sitsTop-10% rateWorksAll time
Physical SciencesDomain #3,760 of 10,670 7.6%63 #1900

Each strip is that field's whole ranked pool, with the notch where Northwest Research Associates sits in it, in the colour of the band that rank falls in. The track under the rate is the rate itself: it carries no average mark, because the average differs by field (from about 6% in Dentistry to 21% in Economics).

Which fields of science does Northwest Research Associates work in?

In 2022-now, 92% of research at Northwest Research Associates is in Physical Sciences, 3% in Life Sciences. Its largest fields are Earth and Planetary Sciences (32%), Physics and Astronomy (23%), Environmental Science (16%). It does 2.2× the world's share of Physical Sciences.

Physical Sciences: 74 fractional works · 92.1% of its workEarth and Planetary Sciences: 26 fractional works · 32.1% of its workAtmospheric Science: 16 fractional works · 20.0% of its workOceanography: 7 fractional works · 8.3% of its workGeophysics: 2 fractional works · 2.6% of its workEarth-Surface Processes: 1 fractional works · 0.6% of its workGeology: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workPhysics and Astronomy: 19 fractional works · 23.4% of its workAstronomy and Astrophysics: 16 fractional works · 20.2% of its workAtomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics: 2 fractional works · 2.4% of its workCondensed Matter Physics: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workEnvironmental Science: 13 fractional works · 16.2% of its workGlobal and Planetary Change: 11 fractional works · 13.6% of its workEnvironmental Engineering: 1 fractional works · 1.5% of its workEcology: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workEnvironmental Chemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workEngineering: 11 fractional works · 13.3% of its workElectrical and Electronic Engineering: 4 fractional works · 4.5% of its workAerospace Engineering: 3 fractional works · 4.2% of its workComputational Mechanics: 2 fractional works · 2.9% of its workBiomedical Engineering: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workOcean Engineering: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workMechanical Engineering: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSafety, Risk, Reliability and Quality: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workComputer Science: 5 fractional works · 5.8% of its workArtificial Intelligence: 3 fractional works · 4.0% of its workSignal Processing: 1 fractional works · 0.8% of its workComputer Vision and Pattern Recognition: 1 fractional works · 0.8% of its workComputer Science Applications: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workChemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workAnalytical Chemistry: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workChemical Engineering: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workBioengineering: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEnergy: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workRenewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workMathematics: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workLife Sciences: 3 fractional works · 3.4% of its workBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 2 fractional works · 2.1% of its workMolecular Biology: 1 fractional works · 1.7% of its workGenetics: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workAgricultural and Biological Sciences: 1 fractional works · 1.1% of its workHorticulture: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workInsect Science: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workNeuroscience: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workHealth Sciences: 2 fractional works · 2.3% of its workMedicine: 2 fractional works · 2.1% of its workRadiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workNeurology: 0 fractional works · 0.4% of its workEndocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism: 0 fractional works · 0.3% of its workPhysiology: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSmaller subfields together: 1 fractional works · 0.8% of its workHealth Professions: 0 fractional works · 0.2% of its workSocial Sciences: 2 fractional works · 2.2% of its workEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 1 fractional works · 1.5% of its workEconomics and Econometrics: 1 fractional works · 1.5% of its workSocial Sciences: 0 fractional works · 0.6% of its workEducation: 0 fractional works · 0.5% of its workSmaller subfields together: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workDecision Sciences: 0 fractional works · 0.1% of its workBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0 fractional works · 0.0% of its workPsychology: 0 fractional works · 0.0% of its workALL ITS WORKNorthwestResearch…80fractional works, 2022-now
Life Sciences3%Physical Sciences92%Health Sciences2%Social Sciences2%

Each ring splits the one inside it: the four domains of science, their fields, their subfields. Size is fractional works in 2022-now. Every slice is a page; the interactive view zooms down to single topics and colours each by how much more of it this institution does than the world.

Its 4 domains and 19 fields, with their numbers
    1. Earth and Planetary Sciences2632.1%
    2. Physics and Astronomy1923.4%
    3. Environmental Science1316.2%
    4. Engineering1113.3%
    5. Computer Science55.8%
    6. Chemistry00.6%
    7. Chemical Engineering00.4%
    8. Energy00.2%
    9. Mathematics00.1%
    1. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology22.1%
    2. Agricultural and Biological Sciences11.1%
    3. Neuroscience00.3%
    1. Medicine22.1%
    2. Health Professions00.2%
    1. Economics, Econometrics and Finance11.5%
    2. Social Sciences00.6%
    3. Decision Sciences00.1%
    4. Business, Management and Accounting00.0%
    5. Psychology00.0%
All of science, and how each field's share has moved since 1950: the Science domain explorer

What does Northwest Research Associates specialise in?

Where its research is concentrated relative to its size: Earth and Planetary Sciences takes 20.5× the share of its output that it takes of world research.

  1. Earth and Planetary SciencesField · 25.7 works20×
← less than its size predicts1×more →

Location quotient, a volume reading rather than an impact one. It surfaces small, lopsided specialities.

Field profile

Location quotient across every field it publishes in: outside the ring is more than an institution of this size would be expected to publish, inside it is less.

Agricultural and Biological Sciences: 0.23× its world share, 1 worksAgricultural and Bio…Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology: 0.39× its world share, 2 worksBiochemistry, Geneti…Neuroscience: 0.16× its world share, 0 worksNeuroscienceChemical Engineering: 1.19× its world share, 0 worksChemical EngineeringChemistry: 0.39× its world share, 0 worksChemistryComputer Science: 0.74× its world share, 5 worksComputer ScienceEarth and Planetary Sciences: 20.49× its world share, 26 worksEarth and Planetary …Energy: 0.23× its world share, 0 worksEnergyEngineering: 0.89× its world share, 11 worksEngineeringEnvironmental Science: 3.25× its world share, 13 worksEnvironmental ScienceMathematics: 0.07× its world share, 0 worksMathematicsPhysics and Astronomy: 10.52× its world share, 19 worksPhysics and AstronomyHealth Professions: 0.07× its world share, 0 worksHealth ProfessionsMedicine: 0.11× its world share, 2 worksMedicineBusiness, Management and Accounting: 0.01× its world share, 0 worksBusiness, Management…Decision Sciences: 0.08× its world share, 0 worksDecision SciencesEconomics, Econometrics and Finance: 0.68× its world share, 1 worksEconomics, Econometr…Psychology: 0.01× its world share, 0 worksPsychologySocial Sciences: 0.05× its world share, 0 worksSocial Sciences1×world share
more than its size predictsabout as predictedless

Rings at 0.5×, 1× and 2×. Widest outward: Earth and Planetary Sciences, 20.5×. Every wedge is a field page.

All 19 fields, with their numbers
  1. Earth and Planetary Sciences20.49×26 works
  2. Physics and Astronomy10.52×19 works
  3. Environmental Science3.25×13 works
  4. Chemical Engineering1.19×0 works
  5. Engineering0.89×11 works
  6. Computer Science0.74×5 works
  7. Economics, Econometrics and Finance0.68×1 works
  8. Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology0.39×2 works
  9. Chemistry0.39×0 works
  10. Agricultural and Biological Sciences0.23×1 works
  11. Energy0.23×0 works
  12. Neuroscience0.16×0 works
  13. Medicine0.11×2 works
  14. Decision Sciences0.08×0 works
  15. Mathematics0.07×0 works
  16. Health Professions0.07×0 works
  17. Social Sciences0.05×0 works
  18. Business, Management and Accounting0.01×0 works
  19. Psychology0.01×0 works

Who are the top researchers at Northwest Research Associates?

Ranked on the quality score, Mark Baldwin, Sharon L. Vadas and M. Joan Alexander lead among researchers whose main affiliation is Northwest Research Associates.

  1. 1 Mark Baldwin United States · #99,673 worldwide 14k citations · 148 works
  2. 2 Sharon L. Vadas United States · #179,257 worldwide 6.8k citations · 195 works
  3. 3 M. Joan Alexander United States · #269,335 worldwide 16k citations · 320 works
  4. 4 Timothy J. Dunkerton United States · #317,020 worldwide 15k citations · 181 works
  5. 5 Jonathan M. Lilly United States · #337,495 worldwide 4.1k citations · 109 works
  6. 6 Zachary Duane Lawrence United States · #463,666 worldwide 1.9k citations · 80 works
  7. 7 Laura Holt United States · #730,085 worldwide 1.3k citations · 80 works
  8. 8 Chad M. Spooner United States · #794,465 worldwide 2.4k citations · 66 works
  9. 9 G. Barnes United States · #1,054,980 worldwide 5.4k citations · 168 works
  10. 10 K. D. Leka United States · #1,081,135 worldwide 6.7k citations · 268 works
All ranked researchers at Northwest Research Associates

What are the most cited papers from Northwest Research Associates?

The most cited paper from Northwest Research Associates is "Gravity wave dynamics and effects in the middle atmosphere" (David C. Fritts, M. Joan Alexander, 2003), with 2,823 citations. Next come "The quasi‐biennial oscillation" (2,248) and "Stratospheric Harbingers of Anomalous Weather Regimes" (2,037).

Most cited papers
#PaperReleasedCitations
1 Gravity wave dynamics and effects in the middle atmosphere David C. Fritts, M. Joan Alexander · Reviews of Geophysics Open access Mar 2003 2,823
2 The quasi‐biennial oscillation Mark Baldwin, Lesley J. Gray, Timothy J. Dunkerton et al. · Reviews of Geophysics Open access May 2001 2,248
3 Stratospheric Harbingers of Anomalous Weather Regimes Mark Baldwin, Timothy J. Dunkerton · Science 19 Oct 2001 2,037
4 Tropical tropopause layer Stephan A. Fueglistaler, Andrew Emory Dessler, Timothy J. Dunkerton et al. · Reviews of Geophysics Open access 16 Feb 2009 1,196
5 Satellite Measurements Reveal Persistent Small-Scale Features in Ocean Winds Dudley B. Chelton, Michael G. Schlax, Michael H. Freilich et al. · Science 19 Jan 2004 904
All 59 most cited papers, with filters and sorting

Which keywords describe research at Northwest Research Associates?

By fractional works in 2022-now, weighted toward what it does more of than the world: Solar Wind, Climate Change, Hydrological Cycle, Data Assimilation, Air Quality, Ionosphere, Magnetosphere and Global Warming.

▲ more of its work than of the world's◆ about the world's share▼ less than the world's

Size is fractional works in 2022-now in the topics tagged with each word; colour is the word's share of this institution's work against its share of the world's. The 40 words are chosen for being large and distinctive. Each links to the topic it comes from most.

All 40 words, with their numbers
  1. Climate Change13▲ 5.9×20 topics
  2. Solar Wind12▲ 170×2 topics
  3. Data Assimilation8▲ 59×3 topics
  4. Hydrological Cycle8▲ 96×2 topics
  5. Air Quality8▲ 51×4 topics
  6. Ionosphere8▲ 171×1 topic
  7. Magnetosphere8▲ 171×1 topic
  8. Global Warming7▲ 21×5 topics
  9. Boundary Layer7▲ 66×2 topics
  10. Sea Level Rise6▲ 60×3 topics
  11. Convective Parameterization6▲ 124×1 topic
  12. Ensemble Kalman Filter6▲ 70×2 topics
  13. Mesoscale Modeling6▲ 124×1 topic
  14. Ocean Circulation6▲ 52×3 topics
  15. Satellite Observations6▲ 70×2 topics
  16. Remote Sensing5▲ 5.2×8 topics
  17. Tropical Cyclones5▲ 108×2 topics
  18. Coronal Mass Ejections5▲ 170×1 topic
  19. Solar Dynamics Observatory5▲ 170×1 topic
  20. Climate4▲ 58×2 topics
  21. Aerosols4▲ 75×1 topic
  22. Atmospheric Dust4▲ 193×1 topic
  23. Ice Nucleation4▲ 127×2 topics
  24. Greenhouse Gas Emissions4▲ 18×3 topics
  25. Ozone Depletion4▲ 167×1 topic
  26. Stratospheric Water Vapor4▲ 167×1 topic
  27. Climate Modeling4▲ 60×1 topic
  28. Extreme Events4▲ 49×1 topic
  29. Hurricanes3▲ 118×1 topic
  30. Storm Surge3▲ 118×1 topic
  31. Hydrological Modeling3▲ 16×4 topics
  32. Free-Space Optical Communication3▲ 117×1 topic
  33. GRACE3▲ 67×1 topic
  34. Geodetic Measurements3▲ 31×2 topics
  35. Visible Light Communication3▲ 117×1 topic
  36. groundwater depletion3▲ 67×1 topic
  37. Large-Eddy Simulation2▲ 16×2 topics
  38. Wireless Communications2▲ 16×2 topics
  39. Atmospheric Aerosols2▲ 46×1 topic
  40. Black Carbon2▲ 46×1 topic

Which research topics does Northwest Research Associates publish most on?

By volume in 2022-now: Ionosphere and magnetosphere dynamics, Meteorological Phenomena and Simulations, Solar and Space Plasma Dynamics and Atmospheric aerosols and clouds.

Ionosphere and magnetosphere dynamics: 8 fractional worksMeteorological Phenomena and Simulations: 6 fractional worksSolar and Space Plasma D…5Solar and Space Plasma Dynamics: 5 fractional worksAtmospheric aerosols and…4Atmospheric aerosols and clouds: 4 fractional worksAtmospheric Ozone and Climate: 4 fractional worksClimate variability and models: 4 fractional worksTropical and Extratropic…3Tropical and Extratropical Cyclones Research: 3 fractional worksOptical Wireless Communication Technologies: 3 fractional worksGeophysics and Gravity Measurements: 3 fractional worksAtmospheric chemistry and aerosols: 2 fractional works
Astronomy and AstrophysicsAtmospheric ScienceGlobal and Planetary ChangeElectrical and Electronic Engineering1 others

Area is fractional works; colour is the subfield each topic belongs to.

  1. 1 Ionosphere and magnetosphere dynamics Astronomy and Astrophysics 8 works
  2. 2 Meteorological Phenomena and Simulations Atmospheric Science 6 works
  3. 3 Solar and Space Plasma Dynamics Astronomy and Astrophysics 5 works
  4. 4 Atmospheric aerosols and clouds Global and Planetary Change 4 works
  5. 5 Atmospheric Ozone and Climate Atmospheric Science 4 works
  6. 6 Climate variability and models Global and Planetary Change 4 works
  7. 7 Tropical and Extratropical Cyclones Research Atmospheric Science 3 works
  8. 8 Optical Wireless Communication Technologies Electrical and Electronic Engineering 3 works
  9. 9 Geophysics and Gravity Measurements Oceanography 3 works
  10. 10 Atmospheric chemistry and aerosols Atmospheric Science 2 works

How open and international is its research?

Against the world's own shares: the tick on each track. Both are shares of its output, so they sit on one scale and can be read against each other as well as against the world.

openly available41.4%not open58.6%

World: 40% of research is openly available.

with international co-authors22.8%domestic only77.2%

World: 18% is written across borders.

How has Northwest Research Associates's research output changed?

Output in 2022-2025 was 34% lower than in 2018-2021.

still counting1990200020102020
grewheldshrank

The same series as a ribbon: one cell per year, darker for more. The line above answers how much; this answers when.

Its share of all research

Growing output can still be a shrinking share: all of science grows. This is Northwest Research Associates as a percentage of every work published that year, 0.00040% in 2024.

still counting0.0010%0.0020%0.0030%Northwest Research Associates0.00029% in 202519801990200020102020

Fractional works of Northwest Research Associates over all fractional works that year. How the balance of science has shifted.

How much of it reaches the world top 10%

Year by year, against all institutions in the same year.

20%40%60%all institutions10.0% in 2024Northwest Research Associates9.5% in 202420102020

Of each year's output, the share that reached the world's 10% most cited for its field and year. Peak 40.7% in 2003.

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Northwest Research Associates on Science Explorer

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