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data should be carefully inventoried, in case any other scientist is 
interested. 
The classified probably would also be excluded, but close liaison 
should be maintained to insure compatibility. I do not believe that 
the data should be acquired in realtime by the proposed center. Again, 
the realtime utilization is a mission oriented aspect fer the develop- 
ment and promulgation of forecasts. 
However, after the data are used in the preparation of the fore- 
casts, they are of climatological interest, historical interest, and should 
go to the national center. 
We now exchange the classical types of oceanographic data directly 
with the foreign national and regional centers through the mechanism 
of World Data Center-A, Oceanography, which is collocated with the 
National Oceanographic Center. I believe that this exchange on the 
international level would be facilitated if there were a single national 
center holding the data for all the marine disciplines. 
The procurement of the data from foreign nations yields high 
returns with a low investment. As an example, more than three- 
quarters of the data in our station data file, consisting of over 300,000 
stations, contains foreign data that our scientists, our Federal activi- 
ties, and our industry use over and over. 
I believe that a national marine data center should continue the 
concept of an interagency advisory board. Such a board provides the 
mechanism for the responsiveness to all segments of the user com- 
munity-government agencies, the academic and private research in- 
stitutions and industry. 
As I indicated, the Commission recommended that there be more 
than one data center. To quote again: “The great variety in quantity, 
quality, and uses of these data suggests that total environmental data 
cannot be handled readily by a single center.” 
I believe that with advances in computer and communications tech- 
nology, a monolithic national environmental data center seems in- 
evitable, but it should be approached cautiously and within the frame- 
work of a phased development. The merging of data functions at too 
early a stage could generate adverse impacts on a data system for 
the marine sciences. 
I believe in summary, Mr. Chairman, that whatever the future 
Federal framework for oceanography, the following proposals should 
be considered with respect to the management of marine data: 
1. Data management functions be merged to create a single 
identifiable national marine data center. 
2. Data generated as part of mission oriented activities, especi- 
ally geophysical data, be transferred to the national marine data 
center once they have served their primary use. 
3. The national marine data center would coordinate closely 
with the national weather data center to achieve compatibility. 
4. The concept of an interagency advisory board, functioning 
essentially as a board of directors reviewing budget, policy, and 
progress, should be continued. 
5. Finally, from my viewpoint and experiences as Director of 
NODC, I believe that funds should be provided to the National 
Marine Data Center from a single agency. 
That completes my statement, sir. I should be happy to answer 
questions. 
