ADVANCEMENT OF MARINE SCIENCES 31 



Soviet Russia is operating at least nine oceanographic research ships 

 of from 3,000 to 12,000 tons and reportedly added two new vessels 

 of approximately 4,500 tons this year. In addition the Russians have 

 many smaller research ships, operate the only submarine adapted to 

 oceanographic studies, and the world's only nonmagnetic ship. 



In the past 4 years the Russians have constructed seven new 

 research ships. 



The 154-ton Acotia, budt under Navy contract for Oregon State 

 College, is the first U.S. ship designed and built for oceanographic 

 research since 1931, or 30 years ago. 



All other ships in the U.S. research fleet are converted tugs, fishing 

 vessels, coastal freighters, schooners, cutters or discarded naval craft. 



The recently commissioned Acona was the first ship of over 115 tona 

 constructed since World War II. 



The oldest ship in the research fleet was built in 1923, and four 

 others are more than 30 years old. The average age is 19 3'ears. 



Laboratory facilities for oceanographic research in the United States, 

 are equally inadequate and antiquated, according to surveys made by 

 the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Oceanography and 

 testimon}- at the hearings held on S. 901. Instruments for scientific 

 studies of the seas also are lacking. 



NEEDS FOR OCEANOGRAPHIC RESEARCH 



Dr. Roger Revelle, director of the Scripps Institution of Oceanog- 

 raphy, and a member of the national Committee on Oceanography,, 

 summarized at the hearings on S. 901, what the United States must, 

 do to meet the scientific challenge of the oceans. He said: 



(A) We must build man}' new and carefully designed ships 

 to replace old obsolete ships and to add to our total national 

 fleet for exploring the oceans. 



(B) We must build man}' new laboratories, instrument 

 shops, piers, and classrooms to accommodate the present 

 overcrowded inarine laboratories and to make room for the 

 many bright \'Oung scientists who are even now flooding our 

 oceanographic centers with applications. 



(C) We must dev^elop and produce hi quantity a whole 

 arsenal of new instruments that will bring the best of modern 

 technology to grips with the herculean task of understanding 

 and exploring the seas. 



(D) We must provide funds at once for training new 

 oceanographers. 



(E) We must plan and carry out a program of ocean wide 

 surveys to map the ocean floor, the properties and move- 

 ments of waters, and the distribution of living creatures. 

 Our maps of the ocean floor, for example, are quite compara- 

 ble in accuracy and in detail to the maps of the land surface^ 

 that we had about the year 1720. 



As so well stated in S. 901 [Dr. Revelle concluded], "there 

 must be a coordinated, long-range nrogram of oceanographic 

 research and inaiine surveys." We are not proposing a 

 crash progi'am such as faced the Nation at the start of the 

 space race. We are proposing instead a sustained and 

 adequate growth to meet serious scientific, resource, and 

 milit'irv needs. 



