PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES OF THE PLAN 
The National Academy of Sciences Committee on Oceanog- 
raphy (NASCO) summarized the need for the systematic inves- 
tigation of the world ocean in the following words: "Maps 
are basic tools for all the sciences that deal with the 
earth. To understand and use the oceans, we must first map 
them." Maps of the ocean must show not only the shape of 
the bottom, but must also show the distribution of the sedi- 
ments which cover it, the gravitational and magnetic fields, 
the three-dimensional distribution of physical and chemical 
properties, living organisms, and such bio-chemical features 
as the productivity or fertility of the waters. These are 
the basic data that are needed on an oceanwide basis for 
understanding the large-scale oceanic interrelationships, 
and it is only by a program of ocean-wide surveys, carefully 
planned and skillfully executed, that they can be efficiently 
provided. Some of the results will be presented as maps, 
some in tabular form, some as atlases, but all data will be 
available in usable form to all who have need for this 
information. The newly formed Intergovernmental Oceanographic 
Commission early realized that the systematic investigation 
of the world ocean was a problem of prime importance that 
necessitated a coordinated international approach. That 
organization has already taken steps to establish the "general 
scientific framework" for such an international effort, and 
the United States Ocean Survey Plan will contribute to this 
