590 
aries and on the Continental Shelves of the United 
States. The objective of these studies is to deter- 
mine the quantities and composition of water and 
sediments carried to the ocean by rivers, and to 
determine the distribution and precipitation of 
sediments and associated wastes in marine waters. 
Studies of the dynamics of mixing fresh water and 
salt water and the loss of fresh water from aquifers 
that extend beneath the continental shelf will con- 
tinue. Also to be studied will be chemical reac- 
tions taking place within sediments and rocks on 
the sea floor. 
* * * 
National Science Foundation: $2,175,000 
NSF grant and contract support will include, 
in addition to its usual support of research at uni- 
versities and institutes, major efforts in the Inter- 
national Indian Ocean Expedition and a continu- 
ing program of Antarctic oceanography conducted 
aboard the USNS ELTANIN. 
Theoretical investigations and model studies on 
general circulation and exchange rates are being 
conducted at Massachusetts Institute of Tech- 
nology, New York University, Lamont Geological 
Observatory, Johns Hopkins University, and the 
University of Washington. Such work will advance 
our understanding of oceanic current development 
and of estuarine and coastal circulation. 
Major field studies aimed at elucidating the 
character of both deep and shallow water circula- 
tion are being undertaken by Scripps Institution 
of Oceanography, Woods Hole Oceanographic In- 
stitution, Oregon State University, the University 
of Miami, University of Southern California, Uni- 
versity of Connecticut, Yale University, University 
of Washington, Texas A&M College, and the Uni- 
versity of Rhode Island. These will be in close co- 
operation to similar work supported by ONR. 
The chemistry of sea water is being investigated 
by various means. Amherst College, Scripps, Wash- 
ington, Woods Hole, and Miami are active in this 
work. 
* * * 
2. OCEAN-ATMOSPHERE INTER- 
RELATIONSHIPS: $5,890,000 
The ocean and the atmosphere constitute an 
interacting mechanical and thermodynamic sys- 
tem. Thorough understanding of such problems 
as weather prediction, acoustic communication 
channels through the sea, the behavior of the Gulf 
Stream, or the upwelling of cold water, which may 
19 
NATIONAL OCEANOGRAPHIC PROGRAM—1965 
sustain a rich growth of biological material all 
depend in complex ways upon the interaction of air 
and water. The most critical research needs in 
this area may be grouped in the following way: 
(a) laboratory and field studies of the physical 
chemistry of the interface and its role in transfer 
through the surface, (b) development and testing 
of instruments and platforms to measure wind 
stress and vertical transfer of heat, water vapor, 
carbon dioxide, and other materials, (c) coordi- 
nated field programs comparing several independ- 
ent methods for measuring vertical transfer, (d) 
development of observation, data collecting and 
processing systems covering large ocean areas, and 
(e) incorporation of effects of interaction in large 
scale dynamic problems (e.g., 30 day weather pre- 
diction). Planning in this area has been carried 
out initially by the National Academy of Sciences 
and by the Joint ICO-ICAS Committee on Air Sea 
Interaction. 
The need for increased effort in this area and, 
especially, the need for centralized coordination 
of field programs has been recognized by the ICO 
and by the Interdepartmental Committee on At- 
mospheric Sciences (ICAS). As a result the De- 
partment of Commerce has recently been assigned 
the responsibility for leadership in coordination of 
activities which contribute to a coherent national 
program, in stimulation of interest and under- 
standing of those parts of the program which need 
strengthening, and in administrative coordination 
of area studies in which universities, research in- 
stitutions, and government agencies may partici- 
pate. A small staff is being assembled for this 
purpose. 
* * * 
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 
UNITED STATES NAVY 
Office of Naval Research: $2,734,000 
Stereophotography of the sea surface will be 
used in a program sponsored jointly by ONR, 
NAVOCEANO, and the Applied Physics Labora- 
tory of Johns Hopkins University. The program 
will involve stereophotography conducted from 
aboard ship by ONR, to determine capillary wave 
spectra. Measurements of radar backscatter to de- 
termine the spectra of larger wind waves will be 
taken by the Applied Physics Laboratory, con- 
currently with aircraft stereophotography con- 
ducted by NAVOCEANO. 
A four-engine aircraft has been made available 
to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution by the 
