149 



Mr. Weldon. Thank you. Yes, Dr. Ballard? That will be one of 

 the areas we'll look to help you with as well during the budget 

 process. 



Dr. Ballard? 



Dr. Ballard. Yes. Another, I think, if one wants to look into the 

 advgmces being made in telecommunications to be able to use tele- 

 communications for scientists in the laboratories on shore to access 

 ships at sea while thej^re working. 



I think it's not possible for the oceanographers to go on a long 

 cruise that has multiple purposes for that limited time window 

 when they might want to do their work. 



We certainly know that in the private sector, the advances in 

 telecommunications are really advanced now and that scientists 

 should be able to access military platforms or other platforms with- 

 out physically having to go there. 



And I certainly know that the Department of Defense has very 

 sophisticated telecommunications technologies that they might 

 want to look at how to use those in a nonclassified way to provide 

 access to their platforms, or anyone's platforms, without having to 

 physically put people on the ships. 



Mr. Weldon. Excellent suggestion. And I would ask. Admiral 

 Boorda, if you could provide for the record some overview of the po- 

 tential in that area for that kind of coordination in the future. 



Admiral BoORDA. We'd be happy to. That's exactly the kind of 

 initiatives we're looking for. 



[See Appendix for the information supplied by Admiral Boorda.] 



Mr. Weldon. Thank you very much. With that, I have other 

 questions, but I will defer to our panelists who have a number of 

 questions. And with that, I'll start with our chairman of our 

 Science Subcommittee, Mr. Rohrabacher. 



Mr. Rohrabacher. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. 



First of all, I want to commend you, Mr. Ballard. Your vision of 

 what can be the potential of the ocean, I know that some people 

 think that the ocean is something to be preserved and to keep peo- 

 ple away from. 



Being a surfer, I know that the ocean is there for all of us to 

 enjoy and to preserve, but also to use for the benefit of mankind. 



I think your vision of an ocean in the future that can be put to 

 use for the benefit of all mankind is very acceptable — not accept- 

 able — but an admirable vision. 



Interestingly enough, I thought that it paralleled some of the \'i- 

 sion that people have for space, and I am also on the Space Sub- 

 committee. 



Do you think that there's enough cooperation going on between 

 the space communities and the oceanographic communities? 



Dr. Ballard. I think the trend is in the right direction. I think 

 there's much more cooperation now than in the past. And as I say, 

 all evidence suggests that there will be more. 



Certainly, NASA has trained its technology and its incredible re- 

 sources not only into outer space, but back on to earth itself. A lot 

 of cooperation. 



I might add that I grew up in Long Beach and got my diver cer- 

 tification in Belmont Shore. So I've lived the world that you've 

 lived in. 



