CHEYENNE - Scientists and administrators from the National Center for Atmospheric Research spent the day here Tuesday, taking in Cheyenne Frontier Days events and getting better acquainted with their new partners in Wyoming.

About 50 NCAR employees and family members from Boulder, Colo., were treated to a community luncheon and later sampled the world's largest outdoor rodeo from choice seating provided by areas businesses.

"We're at our Sunday best right now, so it's a good time to bring them here," said Mike Ceballos, president for Qwest Communications International in Wyoming, and one of the event coordinators.

In January, NCAR and the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research announced plans to build the world's largest supercomputer in Cheyenne at a cost of around $60 million.

The project, which includes a partnership with the University of Wyoming, will bring at least 40 well-paid employees to the area. It has also been billed as a potential catalyst for technology development in southeastern Wyoming.

Randy Bruns, CEO of Cheyenne's nonprofit economic development arm, Cheyenne LEADS, said Tuesday's event was a way to help acquaint the Cheyenne community with the NCAR and UCAR staff, some of whom will be moving here after the supercomputer is built.

Bruns admitted that he initially wasn't sure if Cheyenne Frontier Days, a weeklong celebration of rodeo and the American West, would appeal to a group of scientists from one of the more progressive corners of the Rockies. But NCAR officials said they were enjoying the entertainment and the company.

"We're delighted with the spirit and the quality of the people here, and how enthusiastic everyone seems about the project," said NCAR Director Timothy Killeen, who was honored with a Cheyenne Frontier Days belt buckle from his hosts.

Also taking part in Tuesday's luncheon were Gov. Dave Freudenthal, UW President Tom Buchanan, Cheyenne Mayor Jack Spiker, Cheyenne City Council members and representatives of local businesses and organizations.

Cheyenne outcompeted several other potential sites for the new supercomputer, including Boulder. The state Legislature helped seal the deal by contributing $21 million.

UW, which will eventually enjoy a substantial percentage of the computing power for research projects, has pledged up to $10 million.

The proposal is now working its way through federal agency in charge of NCAR, the National Science Foundation. Construction is scheduled to start in 2009, said Kathryn Schmoll, vice president for finance and administration at UCAR.

Once complete, the computer will fill a 60,000-square-foot building on land north of the new Wal-Mart distribution center, just off Interstate 80.

"It will look like a big box from the outside, but it's actually very complicated and intricate inside," Schmoll said.

NCAR officials hope to spice up the building with a visitors center. The existing supercomputer in Boulder each year attracts 80,000 visitors who can peer into the machine's inner workings through a pane of glass.

"We really hope to take advantage of that and build a first-class visitors center," said Killeen, adding that the visitors center is part of the proposal now under review by the National Science Foundation.

When complete, the computer will have the capacity to simulate complex systems in the natural world, such as weather patterns and the impact of humans on the global environment.

UW officials also have discussed the potential for advancing Wyoming's energy economy with help from the extensive computing power.

"Because nature is so complicated, we need big computers," Killeen said.

Killeen said there's no sure fire way to predict what impact the computer may have on Cheyenne and Laramie.

He said the ongoing global shift toward an information-based economy will almost certainly be a blessing for communities lucky enough to have important tech-based tools such as a supercomputer.

Boulder's supercomputer provided a seed for that community's tech economy, which has been thriving for decades, he said.

"I could easily imagine the same thing happening to the north," Killeen said.

Reach capital bureau reporter Jared Miller at (307) 632-1244 or at jared.miller@casperstartribune.net.