SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION ACTIVITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY 



BUREAU OF MEDICINE AND SURGERY . In addition to 

 providing for medical care for naval personnel, 

 the Bureau conducts medical and dental research 

 and is responsible for the prevention and control 

 of disease in naval combat forces. (40) 



BUREAU OF NAVAL PERSONNEL . The Navy's recruiting, 

 replacement, education and training programs are 

 administered by this Bureau. It engages in per- 

 sonnel research to determine personnel and train- 

 ing requirements for new weapon and support systems. 

 (40) 



BUREAU OF NAVAL WEAPONS . In 1959, the Bureau of 

 Ordnance and the Bureau of Aeronautics were com- 

 bined to form the Bureau of Naval Weapons . The 

 new Bureau is responsible for the design, develop- 

 ment, and testing of all naval weapons, missiles, 

 aircraft, space vehicles, and supporting equipment. 

 (40) 



BUREAU OF SHIPS . This Bureau is responsible for 

 the design and development of naval vessels. It 

 conducts and sponsors materials research with em- 

 phasis on protection against chemical, biological, 

 and radiological warfare effects, and develops 

 special devices such as respiratory protective 

 apparatus, diving apparatus, and radio, radar, and 

 sonar equipment and accessories . (40) 



BUREAU OF SUPPLIES AND ACCOUNTS . This Bureau con- 

 ducts or sponsors research projects in advanced 

 logistics, supply and food engineering, special- 

 purpose clothing, cargo handling, and packaging 

 and preservation. (40) 



CHIEF OF NAVAL OPERATIONS . The Office of the Chief 

 of Naval Operations, with headquarters in the Pen- 

 tagon Building, Washington, D.C., 20350, formulates 

 the Navy's research and development requirements 

 and program objectives. It has jurisdiction over 

 the following installations. 



The Naval Oceanographic Office, which is the 

 principal source of oceanographic and hydrographic 

 data and charts in the United States ; 



The Naval Observatory, which conducts research 

 in astronomy and derives the most accurate possible 

 time from its observations for dissemination by the 

 appropriate authorities; and 



The Navy Department Library in the Main Navy 

 Building, Washington, D.C., 20360. (40) 



NATIONAL OCEANOGRAPHIC DATA CENTER . The Naval 

 Oceanographic Office administers the National 

 Oceanographic Data Center (NODC) established in 

 1960 at the Navy Yard Annex, Washington, D.C., 

 20390, as a national clearinghouse for oceano- 

 graphic data. Policies of the Center are deter- 

 mined jointly by a Policy Board comprised of rep- 

 resentatives of the sponsoring agencies - the Office 



of Naval Research and Oceanographic Office; the 

 Coast and Geodetic Survey and the Weather Bureau 

 (both of which are activities of the U.S. Depart- 

 ment of Commerce) ; the Bureau of Commercial 

 Fisheries of the Department of the Interior; the 

 National Science Foundation; the Atomic Energy 

 Commission; and the U.S. Coast Guard (Treasury 

 Department) . 



The nucleus of the Center's collection is 

 the bathythermograph and oceanographic station 

 data collected and processed by the Oceanographic 

 Office and consists of approximately 5 million 

 punched cards of physical and chemical data and 

 several million wave and sea surface temperature 

 observations in various forms. Oceanographic 

 station data are largely North Atlantic Ocean 

 observations, but increasing amounts of Pacific 

 and Indian Ocean data are being processed. The 

 Center also collects pertinent technical reports , 

 journals, and scientific literature in the major 

 European languages, including Russian and Japanese. 

 Information is exchanged with oceanographic organi- 

 zations in the United States and abroad . (40) 



NAVAL BIOLOGICAL LABORATORY . The Naval Biological 

 Laboratory (NBL) , located in Oakland, Calif., and 

 maintaining additional facilities on the campus of 

 the University of California at Berkeley, is 

 operated under contract by the University of Calif- 

 ornia. Its staff is augmented by a research unit 

 assigned by the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery. 

 The Laboratory is concerned chiefly with the study 

 of selected epidemiological characteristics and 

 aerobiologic behavior of disease agents. (40) 



NAVAL OCEANOGRAPHIC OFFICE . This office (until 

 July 1962 known as the U.S. Navy Hydrographic 

 Office) traces its origin to 1830 when the Navy 

 established a Depot of Charts and Instruments to 

 collect and to assume responsibility for the care 

 and issue of charts and navigational instruments 

 to U.S. naval ships. The mission of the Oceano- 

 graphic Office, located at Suitland, Md. (mailing 

 address: Washington, D.C., 20390), includes prepara- 

 tion of hydrographic and other navigational charts 

 and publications, and the conduct of applied 

 oceanographic programs for the Navy. The Office 

 collects, analyzes and evaluates worldwide data 

 for dissemination in the form of charts, tables, 

 publications, and technical reports. 



The U. S. Naval Oceanographic Office collects 

 and generates information in the following subject 

 fields: 



Oceanography and Hydrography: Ocean soundings 

 and depth profiles ; bottom sediments and topo- 

 graphy; ocean wave characteristics; wave forecast- 

 ing and hindcasting; production of least-time 

 tracks for optimum ship routing; internal waves; 

 ocean currents; surface and subsurface thermal 

 structure; heat exchange between sea and atmosphere; 



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