Commerce (Enviromnental Science Services 

 Administration), and Department of Interior 

 (Bureau of Commercial Fisheries). Present coordi- 

 nation mechanisms do not provide for adequate 

 planning, management, and design of a compre- 

 hensive marine environmental monitoring and 

 prediction system. The panel has taken the posi- 

 tion that oceanographic and atmospheric monitor- 

 ing and prediction programs must be planned, 

 implemented, and conducted jointly. 



We find that, to ensure responsiveness to 

 military requirements— as well as to satisfy civil 

 needs— suitably coordinated military and civil 

 systems must be maintained. Responsibility for 

 the civO system should be focused in one agency, 

 for planning, funding, and management of com- 

 mon system elements. Data acquisition and com- 

 munications should be shared and pooled opera- 

 tions; civil and military data processing and 

 forecasting centers should operate, essentially in 

 parallel, to ensure responsiveness to specialized 

 requirements and also for back-up and increased 

 reliability. 



Recommendation: 



Activities in the National Environmental Monitor- 

 ing and Prediction System serving common civil 

 and military interests should be consolidated in 

 one Federal agency; specialized military programs 

 should be retained in the Department of Defense. 

 Civil and military enviromnental monitoring and 

 prediction systems should develop within the 

 following guidelines: 



—A common, shared data acquisition network 



—A common, shared communications network, 

 except where military security requires separate 

 systems 



—Independent, parallel data processing and fore- 

 casting facilities 



—Independent, specialized data and forecast dis- 

 semination sub-systems. 



B. Data Storage and Retrieval 



The present system for storage and retrieval of 

 oceanographic information is unsatisfactory. Un- 

 less significant changes are made, it will not be 

 able to handle the vast volumes of data which the 



NEMPS will generate. The National Oceanographic 

 Data Center, which is responsible for certain 

 categories of oceanographic data storage and re- 

 trieval, has not been able to keep pace with 

 growing needs. It is funded under multi-agency 

 arrangements and is not assigned as a major 

 mission to any one agency. Enviromnental data is 

 also archived at other centers. For example, 

 meteorological data as well as surface ocean data 

 are archived at ESSA's National Weather Records 

 Center. 



Recommendation: 



A coordinated system of oceanographic and other 

 environmental data centers should be established. 

 The NODC should be transferred to the civil 

 agency responsible for the National Enviromnental 

 Monitoring and Prediction System. This agency 

 should be given the responsibility for its funding 

 and management. 



C. Satellite Development and Operation 



Research and development in satellite tech- 

 nology for oceanographic measurements should 

 remain the responsibility of NASA. Funding and 

 management of operational satellite systems for 

 oceanographic monitoring should be a responsi- 

 bility of the agency responsible for NEMPS. Such 

 management arrangements have worked effectively 

 for the National weather satellite program. 



Recommendation : 



The agency responsible for NEMPS should adopt 

 arrangements with NASA for satellite ocean- 

 ographic sensor development and operation similar 

 to those which have worked effectively in the 

 National weather satellite program. 



VI. INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION 



The international body responsible for coordi- 

 nating real-time weather and surface ocean data 

 collection is the World Meteorological Organiza- 

 tion. 



The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commis- 

 sion has acted primarily as an international forum 

 for research activities in oceanography, but has in 

 the past year taken steps to plan and implement a 

 global ocean-monitoring program (IGOSS). Al- 

 though these activities are coordinated with the 



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