24 OCEANOGRAPHY IN THE UNITED STATES 



more information about it. I have seen references to it. I am not 

 directly in touch with the correspondence. 



Mr. Drewry. I think we would be interested in hearing about it. 



Mr. Reichelderfer. Mr. Thompson? 



Mr. Thompson. Yes, sir. 



We received that letter and we have been working on a reply with 

 the office of the Secretary of Commerce. 



The Weather Bureau cooperates with the Atomic Energy Com- 

 mission in all aspects involving tlie relationship between atomic energy 

 and meteorology, and we do have plans for providing meteorological 

 instrumentation on the Savannah when it makes that trip. These 

 are well underway. 



Mr. Drewry. Not only as it relates to atomic energy but other- 

 wise, too, is that correct? 



Mr. Thompson. That is correct, sir. 



Mr. Drewry. Could there be an expansion of your comment in the 

 conclusion, Dr. Reichelderfer, about the potential of extensive use of 

 merchant ships? Have you proceeded with that concept any more 

 than you have in recent years? 



Mr. Reichelderfer. We have had plans for many years for a 

 better use of merchant vessels. 



One of the first things to do is to equip them with better instru- 

 ments. They are not costly instruments but they are accurate 

 scientific instruments and ships are not always so equipped at the 

 present time. 



In order to have a well-tied-together plan, there should be better 

 coordination, better training of ships views in the use of these instru- 

 ments. 



Is this along the line that you mean? 



Mr. Drewry. Yes, sir. I was going to ask, do you have your 

 own observers abroad these vessels or ships officers or crews? 



Mr. Reichelderfer. On regular merchant vessels we do not have 

 our own people except on the seven that I mentioned that are equipped 

 with upper air sounding equipments. 



Normally, the hundreds of cooperating merchant vessels, the all 

 year round radio reporting vessels that report to the United States 

 total 765. Of course, these do not all come in every day. 



You see, there is a tremendous problem in equipping them with 

 better instruments, equipping them with some instrument to measure 

 perhaps salinity and other things which they do not measure now and 

 which would not be very costly. 



This must be done with a well thought out plan and with training 

 and coordination. This is in our plans but it has not been imple- 

 mented except on a verj'^ small scale. 



Mr. Drewry. Are there not quite a number of operations of an 

 overall nature that can be handled while the sliip is in motion either 

 with recording instruments or any way with a minimum of skills 

 necessary to correct the data? 



Mr. Reichelderfer. Certainly there are. 



Mr. Drewry. Do you have a program of instruction to observers 

 on merchant ships among tlie crews and officers on mercliant ships? 



Mr. Reichelderfer. We do have. It is a niininuini ])rogrum but 

 at the several major ports we have men stationed, one or two in most 

 cases, whose duty it is to visit these vessels, any of the selected 



