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destination. For ocean dumping of toxic wastes, this requires the use of models that 

 predict the circulation of water bodies and the flow rates of rivers and tributaries. To be 

 accurate, these models depend on inputs describing environmental conditions and 

 processes that are not well understood for all parts of the world. 



This leads to the second area where data from National Security Systems can 

 have an impact —general oceanography. Observations from national overhead systems 

 can lead to better data on local winds and other meteorology, bathymetry, oceanic fronts, 

 and tidal currents, as well as general circulation and upwelling areas. 



To improve existing transport models, several MEDEA investigations are 

 estimating global ocean circulation patterns, as well as flow patterns in coastal regions. 

 This information is difficult or impossible to generate with other existing remote sensing 

 systems, and requires the unique attributes of the national security systems. 



The large classified Navy databases are also rich with data, and MEDEA is 

 working closely with the Navy on these activities, to determine what unique 

 environmental information the national security systems can provide, and to combine and 

 coordinate the Navy databases with remote sensing data to provide more global coverage 

 for many of these parameters. The Navy MEDEA effort has established a bridge between 

 the scientific community and a number of classified Navy databases, and is providing the 

 scientific community with access to a wide range of new information. Together, MEDEA 

 and the Navy are working to extract environmental information from these databases to 

 input into ocean circulation and transport models. An important point here is that data 

 taken by national security systems can be combined with data from civil systems to 

 provide a much better base for the application of models developed by the Navy, NOAA, 

 EPA, and DOE. 



