The NSF Program in ocean thermal conversion supports research 

 and technology development on the extraction of energy from 

 adjacent water masses with different temperatures. The research 

 program covers a broad spectrum of activities, ranging from 

 mapping the temperatures of ocean water to work on piping and 

 plumbing systems, protection against corrosion and biofouling, and 

 techniques for anchoring or dynamic positioning. Examples of 

 research supported by this program include work on the economic 

 and technical feasibility of a solar power plant using an ocean 

 thermal-difference-process and the design of a condenser surface to 

 minimize thermal impediment of condensation. 



International Ocean Science Activities 



On June 19, 1973, an Agreement for Cooperation in WorldOcean 

 Studies was concluded by the U.S.S.R. and the U.S. The U.S. 

 position was formulated by participants from Navy, NOAA, NSF, 

 Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the State Department, and 

 the Office of Science and Technology. 



The agreement covers a period of 2 years subject to renewal at the 

 end of that time. The initial areas identified for bilateral cooperation 

 are large-scale ocean-atmosphere interaction, including laboratory 

 studies, oceanic experiments, and mathematical modeling of the 

 ocean-atmosphere system; ocean currents of planetary scale and 

 other questions >of ocean dynamics; geochemistry and marine 

 chemistry of the world ocean; geological and geophysical 

 investigations of the world ocean, including deep sea drilling for 

 scientific purposes;- biological productivity of the world ocean and 

 the biochemistry of the functioning of individual organisms and 

 whole biological communities of the world ocean; and 

 intercalibration and standardization of oceanographic 

 instrumentation and methods. Other areas of cooperation may be 

 added by mutual agreement. NOAA has been designated the lead 

 agency for this Agreement. For implementation of the Agreement, a 

 U.S. -U.S.S.R. Joint Committee on Cooperation in World Ocean 

 Studies was established and held its first meeting in Washington 

 during February 1974. 



One of the main goals of IDOE is accelerated understanding of 

 man's impact on the oceans and the ocean's impact on human 

 activities. Consequently, NSF/IDOE has worked to develop 

 scientifically sound cooperative programs offering opportunities for 

 many nations to share both program responsibilities and results. In 

 1971 institutions in six foreign countries had committed resources, 

 and scientists from an additional 15 countries were participating 

 individually. By 1974 nearly 40 countries were active participants in 

 one or more U.S. IDOE projects. 



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