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space satellite meteorological and oceanographic processing responsibilities 

 between the major processing centers of this data. Partners in this program 

 are the Air Force's Air Weather Service, NOAA's NESDIS, and the Navy 

 centers at Fleet Numerical and the Naval Oceanographic Office in' 

 Mississippi. Under this program, Fleet Numerical has been designated the 

 national Center of Expertise for microwave imagery deriving such products as 

 surface wind speed, ice location and thickness and rainfall rates from 

 spacebome sensors. As pointed out by Rear Admiral Gaffhey in his January 

 25th testimony, the two Navy sites collectively contribute a full spectrum of 

 remotely sensed ocean parameters (winds, seas, ocean surface temperatures, 

 altimetry, sea ice, etc.) to the national data bank repository of remotely 

 sensed information. This data is then available for both operational and 

 historical use, within government and in the private sector. Additionally, 

 Fleet Numerical pioneered the establishment of algorithm research panels. 

 These panels provide a mechanism to reach out to not only government 

 laboratories but to universities as well in seeking to improve the quality of 

 satellite derived products. 



My presentation to this committee would not be complete without 

 sharing with you the partnerships and interactive mechanisms that are in place 

 both inside and outside of Government on California's Monterey Peninsula. 

 There, the unique niche that Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography 

 Center fills in the area of air-ocean coupled modeling and global product 

 distribution to both military and civil sector users has helped to evolve a 

 burgeoning "region of excellence" in the marine sciences. This "region of 

 excellence" has come together due to major thrusts in three areas of scientific 



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