Recent technical developments should significantly enhance the observational data base available 

 to oceanographers studying general circulation. These include: satellite scatterometery, 

 satellite altimetry, neutrally buoyant and surface floats which can be tracked over great 

 distances, measurements of air-sea fluxes, chemical tracer measurements, acoustic 

 tomography, and eddy-resolving numerical models which can be adapted to operate with basin 

 and global scale data sets in assimilation modes analogous to those used in meteorology. 



Because of these new tools, the National Academy of Sciences held a work shop to look into 

 possibilities of developing a program of global observations toward understanding the general 

 circulation of the oceans. The consensus of this workshop was that WOCE was feasible, 

 worthwhile, and timely. Participants agreed that the overall goal of U.S. contributions to WOCE 

 should be to understand the general circulation of the global ocean well enough to be able to 

 predict ocean response and feedback to long-term changes in the atmosphere. 



Specific objectives to meet this goal are: 



(1 ) To complete a basic description of the present physical state of the ocean; 



(2) To improve the description of the atmospheric boundary conditions on the global ocean and 



to establish their uncertainities; 



(3) To describe the upper boundary layer of the ocean adequately for quantitative estimates of 



water mass transformation; 



(4) To determine the role of interbasin exchanges in the global ocean circulation; 



(5) To determine the role of ocean heat transport and storage in the heat budget of the earth; 



(6) To determine seasonal and interannual oceanic variability on a global scale and to estimate 



its consequences. 



Major hardware costs for WOCE are associated with satellite missions (NROSS, TOPEX, Ocean 

 Color, and GRM) proposed by NASA. We must have at the same time in situ field measurements 

 both at the surface to calibrate satellite data and deeper in the ocean to measure properties and 

 dynamics of the underlying water column. Numerical model development must be closely 

 coupled to these efforts. About 20% of the core program's base budget ($4M) would be devoted to 

 WOCE activities without additional funding increments. 



Additional activities for which funding is required include instrumentation development and 

 acquisition, development of improved data/supercomputer communication links, establishment 

 and operation of data analysis centers, a global hydrographic and tracer survey, an accelerator 

 mass spectrometer (described in the chemical oceanography plan and budgeted under facilities in 

 the Global Ocean Studies section), increased tomography and float capability/activity, 

 process-oriented experiments, and ocean model development. These activities require an 

 additional $1 2M in FY 1 989 above base funds, increase to $20M above base funds in FY 1 990 

 and $30M in the 1 990's. This includes WOCE and related activities which are expected to 

 require a total of about 12 ship-years of support during the FY 1989-1996 period; an 

 additional $2M will be required to upgrade CTD winch capabilities on these ships during WOCE. 



The National Science Foundation has been identified as the lead agency for WOCE studies. 



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