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memorandum of agreement 'to assure maximum efficiency in, and maximum 

 benefit to, the United States from environmeraal data collection, analysis, 

 monitoring, prediction and product distribution activities conducted 

 cooperatively or jointly by (Navy and NOAA). " Under an annex to this 

 agreement, NOAA provides the conduit for distribution of Fleet Numerical 

 products to the civil and commercial sectors, including private forecasting 

 and ship-routing firms as well as schools and imiversities. 



Another annex institutionalizes cooperative and joint efforts between 

 Fleet Numerical and its civilian equivalent, NOAA's National Centers for 

 Environmental Prediction (NCEP). Specifically, Fleet Numerical and NCEP 

 back each other up as protection against catastrophic failure, share product 

 output, and cooperate in the development of computer forecast techniques. In 

 an example of mutual leveraging of scientific research and development. 

 Fleet Numerical and NCEP are presently working cooperatively to develop a 

 previously unavailable coastal ocean prediction capability. Complexities of 

 differing coastal ocean environments require that each agency tackle a 

 different part of the problem and share results. The benefit will be 

 implementation of operational capabilities which meet the needs of both 

 agencies, and at a cost much lower than if they developed similar capabilities 

 independently. These capabilities will include significantly improved support 

 for search-and-rescue, amphibious landings, U.S. Coast Guard support, drug 

 interdiction, etc. 



Beyond these agreements, a long history of cooperation exists between 

 federal agencies involved with weather and ocean prediction. Today, in this 

 era of declining budgets, changing military requirements, and increased 

 demands for services, agencies are pursuing new areas of cooperation. This 



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