Half of the worlds countries are currently not protected by multi-hazard early warning systems (mhews; WMO, 2022)

The comet program, part of the university corporation for atmospheric research (UCAR), is poised to significantly contribute to developing the capacity of operational national meteorological and hydrological services (NMHS) worldwide to implement end-to-end early warning systems by: (1) designing and deploying sustainable 3D printed automatic weather stations (3D-PAWS), rain gauges, stream gauges, storm surge gauges, and additional supporting observation networks; (2) providing robust training, education and community engagement; and (3) facilitating implementation of operational end-to-end mhews at NMHS. As of 2024, comet and partners have deployed 3D-PAWS, stream gauges, storm surge gauges, and snow depth sensors in 18 different countries. During the past five years, comet has published over 180 online lessons and conducted over 40 multi-week residence and virtual courses for forecasters and forecaster-trainers spanning a range of NMHS-relevant topics. Comet and its partners (climate hazards centers located at the university of california-santa barbara, synoptic data and university of maryland - college park) bring demonstrated experience and expertise to successfully lead this multifaceted effort to support communities in building their resilience to weather and climate-based hazards. Implementing people-centered, end-to-end early warning systems requires an interactive approach that is responsive to the needs of the communities being served. Comets capacity development framework includes needs assessment, tailored solutions based on requirements, implementation and training, follow-up to galvanize skills, and documentation of the lessons learned to ensure continuous improvement. Training is critical to the success of any capacity development project, and, as an established world leader in innovative, industry-leading weather, water, and climate education and training solutions, comet will leverage its training expertise and the comet meted online learning portal in support of this effort. Comet will address all ten of the priority areas of the international capacity development for weather and climate forecasting and disaster risk reduction program. Specifically, comet will increase earlier detection of hydrometeorological hazards by expanding sustainable observation networks; facilitating and developing robust training and community engagement; improving emergency communication networks; integrating and streamlining the implementation of end-to-end mhews; and skillfully managing outreach partner development and sub-awards. Overall, comet will meet the needs of communities by meeting them where they are, adapting the end-to-end early warning process to work with their existing systems while empowering NMHS through investments in technology, infrastructure, and training to meet the goals of the program.