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News and Events 2007
 OMAO Sends in Postcards from the Field
As part of NOAA's 200th Celebration, OMAO personnel -- from the ships, the aircraft and various offices -- are contributing to NOAA's "Postcards from the Field." A "postcard" is a photo from a NOAA field office, science center, or any site on the globe where NOAA is conducting research or field work. OMAO's postcards are those submitted by OMAO personnel. You can see the postcards from all of NOAA on NOAA's 200th Celebration Web site "Postcards from the Field."
NOAA and VT Halter Marine Launch Third Fisheries Survey Vessel
 PISCES, the third of four new fisheries survey vessels of the same class, was launched December 19, 2007, at Halter VT Marine, Inc., in Moss Point, Mississippi. She will be homeported in Pascagoula, Mississippi, when placed into operation in late 2008, and will support NOAA Fisheries research and assessments in the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea and along the U.S. southeastern seaboard. Visit the PISCES launch page for pictures and more information about the event.
 NOAA Ship JOHN N. COBB participates in 21st Seafair Special People's Holiday Cruise
The NOAA Ship JOHN N. COBB continued its tradition of participating in the Seafair Special People's Holiday Cruise on December 2.
It is the 21st year that the JOHN N. COBB has conducted the cruise from Lake Union to Lake Washington and back. The ship took 29 passengers and 16 NOAA volunteers out on a blustery Seattle winter evening to spread cheer and goodwill with other vessels and shoreside spectators. Though the event is mainly geared towards developmentally disabled adults, the JOHN N. COBB hosted a local Boy Scout Troop and their chaperones. There was an unusually high level of energy aboard but everyone had a safe and cheerful time.
NOAA Small Boat Safety Program Holds Training Courses for NOAA Small Boat Operators
The NOAA Small Boat Safety Program staged its first three training courses in November. The first was a one day “NOAA Component” that consists of NOAA small boat policy and procedures, risk management, and team coordination/leadership for the small boat operator.
The second and third were the “NOAA Inspection and Troubleshooting” courses, put together in conjunction with the American Boat and Yacht Council (ABYC). In the Inspection course, students learned the use of testing equipment and techniques and applicable USCG and ABYC standards, and conducted hands-on inspections of a wide variety of boats.
The “On the Water Troubleshooting” course, designed for the operator, taught the basics of outboard and diesel propulsion systems and electrical and plumbing systems. Students learned to identify, then fix or deal with issues that may arise in the field. Student comments will be incorporated to improve these courses that will be taught to many of NOAA's 800 small boat operators.
Teacher at Sea Program Completes Another Banner Year -- Call for Applications for 2008 is Open
 NOAA's Teacher at Sea Program has wrapped up the 2007 season after a productive and
successful year. Twenty-five teachers were sent to sea to work side-by-side with NOAA scientists on
cutting-edge research. The teachers then brought what they learned back to their classrooms to share
with their students. Since its inception in 1990, the program has sent more than 500 teachers to sea to
learn about NOAA science. The program has also produced three children’s books in the past three
years about the adventures of two Teachers at Sea (aboard RONALD H. BROWN and
FAIRWEATHER) and one Teacher in the Air (aboard a NOAA P-3 during the Hurricane Awareness
Tour). Applications are now being accepted for the 2008 season and must be submitted (postmarked) by December 31, 2007.
Commerce Secretary Assigns New Director For NOAA Corps and Office of Marine and Aviation Operations
Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez has assigned Rear Admiral Jonathan W. Bailey, NOAA, as director of the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps and NOAA’s Office of Marine and Aviation Operations. This action follows the recent Senate confirmation of Bailey to the rank of rear admiral. Rear Admiral Bailey relieved Rear Adm. Samuel P. De Bow Jr., in a formal ceremony on October 5 at the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.
As director of the NOAA Corps and the Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, Bailey will have overall responsibility for the uniformed and civilian personnel within OMAO plus the fleet of research/survey ships and aircraft that support NOAA’s mission. NOAA Corps officers operate and manage the active fleet of 19 vessels and 12 aircraft as well as shore-side assignments. Read the NOAA news story for more information.
Sky News
On Tuesday, September 25, NOAA’s two WP-3D Orion aircraft departed for Barbados where the crew and aircraft will fly Invest AL97 and possibly Tropical Storm Karen. The P-3s will alternate flying every 12 hours to support the Three Dimension (3D) Doppler Winds experiment. This is a NOAA mission that conducts a set of three-dimensional Doppler-Wind experiments over a several-day period, encompassing as much of a particular storm’s life cycle as possible. This entails using the two NOAA WP-3D Orion aircraft on back-to-back flights on a 12-hour schedule when the system is at depression, tropical storm or hurricane strength.
Earlier in September, both P-3s deployed to Barbados to begin a cycle of 3-Dimensional Tail Doppler Radar missions into Atlantic Invest Tropical Storm Ingrid, located east of the eastern-most Windward Island. These missions, which are flown into developing tropical systems, are designed to collect Doppler radar data which will be assimilated into the Hurricane Weather Research Forecast (HWRF) model in an attempt to improve intensity forecasts. The effort is in its fledgling stages, and different sampling schemes and operating techniques are being investigated to determine the best manner in which to conduct these missions in future years.
Since the sampling time is centered on the 00Z and 12Z model times, the P-3s are alternately launched at 1600L (20Z) and 0400L (08Z) to allow sufficient sampling and ferry times for the mission. A total of six missions, three by each aircraft, were flown into AL97 during the deployment. As an add-on to this effort, the NESDIS-UMASS Ocean Winds team also participated, collecting valuable data from N42RF for validation of satellite surface vector wind measurements. Following their return to MacDill AFB on September 18, each aircraft flew a mission into TD #10, one for Ocean Winds and the second a tasked mission for reconnaissance.
Senate Confirms New Director of Marine and Aviation Operations Centers
President George W. Bush has appointed, with the advice and consent of the Senate, Captain Philip M. Kenul, NOAA, to the rank of rear admiral (lower half) effective August 1. U.S. Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez has assigned RDML Kenul to be director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine and Aviation Operations Centers.
RDML Kenul will provide the leadership for operations centers that are indispensable to NOAA’s overall mission and objectives. He will be in charge of NOAA’s fleet of 19 ships and 12 aircraft that support the acquisition of oceanographic and atmospheric research data for many programs within NOAA and in collaboration with NOAA partners. His position is the second highest held by a NOAA Corps officer.
NOAA Ship THOMAS JEFFERSON Visits Alexandria
 As part of NOAA’s 200th Celebration, THOMAS JEFFERSON made a rare port call in Old Town, Alexandria, VA, on July 25-26 to promote public education and awareness of NOAA’s mission.
The opening ceremony, emceed by CAPT Michele Bullock, featured remarks by RADM De Bow, Alexandria Mayor William Euille, and Deputy Under Secretary BG Jack Kelly; a presentation to the ship by RADM Harley Nygren (NOAA, ret.) on behalf of the Coast & Geodetic Survey Society; a presentation to the Mayor of an original nautical chart; and the unveiling of an oil painting of THOMAS JEFFERSON by artist Morgan Wilbur.
NOAA and City of Alexandria employees, student groups, and dignitaries toured the ship on July 25 and visited the NOAA exhibits and hands-on demonstrations supported by OMAO, NOS, NMFS, and NOAA Preserve America on the pier. The students participated in a number of special activities as well. The ship and exhibits were open to the general public on July 26.
NOAA Teacher at Sea Program Unveils New Children’s Book
 NOAA’s Teacher at Sea program unveiled its third in a series of four planned children’s books at an evening reception on July 25 in Alexandria, VA, which was held in conjunction with THOMAS JEFFERSON’s 200th Celebration port call.
The book is about the experiences of teacher Linda Armwood aboard NOAA hydrographic survey ship FAIRWEATHER. At the time of her voyage, Ms. Armwood taught at George Wythe High School in Richmond, VA; currently, she is an educational consultant in Richmond. The book was written by Diane Stanitski, Ph.D., a former university professor and NOAA Teacher at Sea, who has also served as a consultant for NOAA.
The book was illustrated by Bruce Cowden, chief boatswain of RONALD H. BROWN. Both Dr. Stanitski and Mr. Cowden collaborated on the previous two books in the series. They joined Ms. Armwood at the unveiling of the Teacher at Sea book and all three signed books by the hundreds both at the reception and at the THOMAS JEFFERSON event the following day.
U.S. Representative Jim Moran of Virginia joined VADM Lautenbacher, RADM De Bow and Linda Armwood in making remarks at the reception. One of Ms. Armwood’s students also spoke of the impact she had had on his decision to further his education—due in part to her passion for continued learning through such experiences as NOAA’s Teacher at Sea program. Alexandria City Mayor William Euille also attended the reception as NOAA’s host in the city.
New NOAA Fisheries Survey Vessel is Commissioned
 NOAA fisheries survey ship HENRY B. BIGELOW, was commissioned July 16 at NOAA’s Marine Operations Center-Atlantic in Norfolk, VA.
It is the second of four ships in its class designed and built by VT Halter Marine Inc. in Moss Point, MS. The ship was named in honor of the founding director of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, a pioneering ocean researcher whose extensive investigations are recognized as the foundation of modern oceanography.
Read the OMAO story for more information about the ceremony, the ship and crew.
 NOAA Ship Docks at New Pier at Ford Island
NOAA ship HI'IALAKAI docked for the first time at pier F9 on June 24. NOAA Pier F9 is the second of two piers rebuilt for NOAA's use on Ford Island in Honolulu, Hawaii. The pier facility greatly enhances NOAA's marine operations capabilities in the Pacific, and is the first phase in establishing a NOAA Pacific Regional Center to consolidate NOAA's various services onto one campus in Honolulu.
In July, the ship conducted a 23-day coral reef research cruise in the recently established Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument. During the first week of August the ship got underway to service NOAA experimental tsunami detection (DART) buoys off Oahu and the Big Island of Hawaii
NOAA Celebrates Keel Laying of Two Ships
 June 15 was a banner day for NOAA’s fleet modernization. For the first time in NOAA’s and VT Halter Marine’s history, we simultaneously celebrated the keel laying of two vessels, signifying their start of construction: BELL M. SHIMADA, or Fisheries Survey Vessel 4, and FERDINAND R. HASSLER, NOAA’s first new Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull (SWATH) coastal mapping vessel. The event was attended by NOAA and VT Halter Marine personnel as well as the two student teams that named, through regional NOAA contests, the ships that will go to their respective areas. The team from Marina High School in California and their principal attended for BELL M. SHIMADA, which will be homeported on the West Coast. The team from Naugatuck High School in Connecticut and their teacher attended for FERDINAND R. HASSLER, which will be homeported in New Hampshire. Read the full story.
NOAA Ship NANCY FOSTER Maps Ocean Floor Off Florida East Coast
 NOAA ship NANCY FOSTER conducted a cruise off of Florida’s east coast from June 1 through June 10 to map the ocean floor in Habitat Areas of Particular Concern for the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC). This mission is a “cobbling together” of the resources of many to provide data for the Council’s needs. The ship is providing support to NOAA’s Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary, National Ocean Service, to meet regional science needs to the SAFMC to help map deep-water coral and golden crab habitats. The National Undersea Research Center (NURC) at UNC-Wilmington offered up the use of its National Institute for Undersea Science and Technology’s (NIUST) Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) to map specific areas of interest in depths of 250-850 meters. After the ship acquires 100% bottom insonification of the sea floor using a SIMRAD EM1002, the AUV’s SIMRAD EM2000 maps these defined areas with high resolution. The AUV acquires data at speeds reaching 4 knots for up to 30 hours. The synergistic fashion in which this mission is being conducted meets many of the needs of individual programs that might have alone used the platform for a single purpose. NANCY FOSTER is the first NOAA ship to test and successfully operate an AUV of this magnitude for this sort of mission.
OMAO is highlighted in feature stories on the NOAA's 200th Celebration Web site
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New NOAA Fisheries Vessel Exceeds International Standards as Quiet Vessel
NOAA ship HENRY B. BIGELOW, has exceeded international standards as an acoustically quiet vessel, according to a report released by the U.S. Navy.
"HENRY B. BIGELOW is one of only a handful of research ships in the world that have met this high standard as a quiet research vessel," said Navy Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr., undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator. "With its dramatically lower background noise levels, this ship will greatly enhance our ability to use the most sophisticated acoustic devices to assess fish stocks."
NOAA received the results from a battery of underwater acoustic tests done by the Navy on the ship at the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Center on Andros Island in the Bahamas. Read the NOAA News article for the full story.
MILLER FREEMAN completes Fisheries-Oceanography Coordinated Investigations Cruise & Hosts Teacher at Sea
 NOAA ship MILLER FREEMAN completed its seventh cruise and 29th consecutive sea day in the Bering Sea on May 18. This cruise was sponsored by the Alaska Fisheries Science Center’s Fisheries-Oceanography Coordinated Investigations (FOCI) group. During the cruise, more than 200 plankton tows were conducted. One of the main target species of these tows was the Greenland halibut. This halibut is rare in the Bering Sea and little is known about its life cycle in that region. A handful of specimens were found, which will undoubtedly lead to a better understanding of this fish in the Bering Sea.
At least two short-winged albatrosses were spotted and photographed from the ship. This type of albatross, once extremely common in the north Pacific, is now an exceedingly rare sight. Breeding only on two small Japanese islands, it is estimated that only 2,000 or so of these birds exist today. The species was once thought to be extinct after it was nearly wiped out by the feather trade in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Also participating on this cruise as a Teacher at Sea, was Jacob Tanenbaum, a technology teacher from the South Orangetown School District in Rockland County, New York. This was Jacob's second trip on the ship. Last year he participated in one of the Alaska Fisheries Science Center’s eastern Bering Sea pollock surveys. This year he was on the FOCI larval plankton cruise to see the early life stages of pollock. To better involve his students, Jacob had them build an ARGOS drifter buoy which was launched on May 24. The buoy was a commercially available product, although Jacob's students helped by building the drogue portion of the drifter. While at sea, Jacob took full advantage of MILLER FREEMAN’s satellite system by updating a daily Web blog. This blog provided students almost real-time interaction with the scientific mission. The blog can be seen at the following address. http://jacobtanenbaum.com/~tas2blog/index.html
 Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull (SWATH) Coastal Mapping Vessel Has a Name
A team of four students and their biology teacher from Naugatuck High School in Naugatuck, CT, has won the “Name NOAA’s New Ship” contest. The Fleet Council recommended, and VADM Lautenbacher confirmed, the entry “Ferdinand R. Hassler” for the 124-foot SWATH coastal mapping vessel that is currently under construction in Mississippi. As the first superintendent of the Coast Survey, Hassler was a key player in NOAA’s earliest history.
The team of four 10th-grade students will be invited to attend the ship’s keel laying ceremony at the VT Halter Marine shipyard in Moss Point, Mississippi on June 15. Mrs. Catherine Sununu, wife of Senator John Sununu of New Hampshire, is sponsor of the ship and will participate in the ceremony. Additionally, RADM De Bow or another senior NOAA official will visit the school in the fall and present it with a duplicate keel plate from the ship.
Since September 2003, NOAA has been using its fleet modernization program to promote science education and ocean literacy by including students and teachers in the ship naming process. Thousands of students have participated in the contests sponsored by the NOAA Office of Education and learned more about NOAA’s important scientific research. FERDINAND R. HASSLER is the fourth NOAA vessel named through a contest. The ship will be homeported in New Castle, New Hampshire, once it becomes operational in 2008.
NOAA Ship KA’IMIMOANA Comes to Aid of Fishery Vessel
On May 16, while conducting El Nino buoy operations in the Central Pacific, KA’IMIMOANA was contacted by the Maritime Rescue Coordination Center about F/V CAPE COD, which had an ill crew member on board. KA’IMIMOANA rendezvoused with the vessel and sent her medical officer, CDR Bruce Topey of the U.S. Public Health Service, aboard with two medical team members to assess the severity of the man’s illness and provide medical care and medicine. CDR Topey determined that the crew member was stable enough to stay aboard CAPE COD; however, KA’IMIMOANA escorted the other vessel for 36 hours to ensure emergency medical assistance would be available if necessary. The MRCC released KA’IMIMOANA late Friday,May 18, as the patient was stable and F/V CAPE COD proceeded independently to Nuka Hiva, French Marquises. Congratulations to LCDR Robert Kamphaus, Acting Commanding Officer, and the entire crew, for providing assistance for the safety of life at sea. Particular thanks to CDR Bruce Topey for the outstanding medical assistance rendered. USPHS officers have provided medical support aboard NOAA ships for over 20 years.
NOAA Shrike Commander Aircraft assists with Missouri River Basin's Flood Reconnaissance
On May 5, pilots LT Jason Seifert and LTJG Patrick Didier flew the Shrike Commander to Kansas City to assist with the Missouri River basin's flood reconnaissance. River forecasters Greg Schalk and Ross Wolford were able to take aerial photos over the affected area between St. Joseph and Jefferson City, Missouri. Photos can be viewed at the National Weather Service National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center's digital aerial photography Web page.
 OKEANOS EXPLORER Conversion
On April 26, the former USNS CAPABLE went back into drydock for the final steps of Phase I of a two-phase approach in her conversion to NOAA ship OKEANOS EXPLORER. The ship is scheduled to come out of drydock on June 25 with sea trials tentatively scheduled for the first week in August.
With its state-of-the-art data acquisition systems and high bandwidth VSAT for telepresence, OKEANOS EXPLORER will conduct interdisciplinary deep-water exploration for the NOAA Research Office of Ocean Exploration. The vessel is designed to operate with the majority of mission scientists ashore who, together with scientists and technicians at sea, will carry out a systematic, global program of ocean exploration linked in real time through satellite and Internet telepresence technology.
Phase II of the conversion will focus on stateroom and mission space conversion, including the installation of a permanent ROV and telepresence control center. The contract package is currently under development and work is expected to begin this October. The ship will complete conversion in spring 2008. Signifying a new era in ocean exploration, OKEANOS EXPLORER will be the only federal vessel dedicated to exploring our largely unknown ocean.
For more information on OKEANOS EXPLORER visit the following URLs:
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2005/s2370.htm
http://www.oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/explorations/05lostcity/background/tech/tech.html
NOAA Hurricane Hunter Aircraft on East Coast Hurricane Awareness Tour 
NOAA hurricane experts traveled aboard a NOAA
WP-3 Orion turboprop Hurricane Hunter in
a five-day, five-city tour of the East Coast from April 30 to May 4. The purpose of the tour was to raise
public awareness of
hurricanes that can threaten the Atlantic Seaboard, and to educate the
public that preparation is vital. It only takes one hurricane—even in
a slow season—to cause massive destruction. Hundreds of school children,
the media, general public, emergency managers, and local officials
toured the aircraft and talked to the NOAA team.
Also on the tour as part of the NOAA Teacher in the Air program, were two former Teachers
at Sea, who are currently working as Einstein Fellows in NOAA's Office
of Education. They distributed a NOAA's children's
book written about a previous hurricane awareness tour and published
last year. The teachers were Judy Reeves (who previously sailed on WHITING
and TOWNSEND CROMWELL) and Joe Shewmaker (who previously sailed on NANCY
FOSTER).
Read the NOAA News story for
more information about the tour.
Read news stories about the tours and interviews with members of the NOAA team about flying into hurricanes
"Crew
Flies into the Eye of Hurricanes" Cape
May County Herald
"Neptune
native flies through stormy skies for science" Asbury Park Press
View pictures of the Cape May County tour on Cape
May County's Web site
NOAA Dive Center News:
On April 24, the NOAA Dive Center provided support for the Seattle Harbor Patrol Unit's Regional Dive Training Exercise. The exercise consisted of federal, county, and local agencies, including the U.S. Coast Guard, King County Sheriff's Office, Pierce County Sheriff's Office, Snohomish County Sheriff's Office, Everett Police Department, Mercer Island Police Department, Port of Seattle Police Department, and the Seattle Police Department. There were 24 regional divers conducting a total of six different dive scenarios including evidence recovery, search and rescue, and item investigations.
The exercise was designed to promote cross agency cooperation and dive coordination to enhance future regional responses. The efforts of the NOAA Dive Center staff were crucial in the coordination of and contribution to the overall success of this regional exercise.
 Wreath-Laying Ceremony Held at Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.
On April 13, U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez participated in an annual wreath laying ceremony that honored President Thomas Jefferson’s 264th birthday and marked the 200th anniversary of Jefferson’s establishment of the first federal science agency, the Survey of the Coast in 1807. The ceremony at the Jefferson Memorial was hosted by the National Park Service, the U.S. Army Military District of Washington, and the District of Columbia Society Sons of the American Revolution D.C. Visit the Department of Commerce photo gallery Web site for more images from the ceremony.
FSV 4 Has a Name!
 A team of five students and their biology teacher from Marina High School in Marina, California, has won the “Name NOAA’s New Ship” contest. VADM Lautenbacher confirmed the NOAA Fleet Council’s recommendation of the entry “BELL M. SHIMADA” for FSV 4, which is under construction at VT Halter Marine Inc. in Pascagoula, MS. The student team will be invited to attend the ship’s keel laying ceremony on June 15.
The ship’s namesake was known for his distinctive mark on the study of Pacific tropical tuna stocks. Working with interdisciplinary teams of biologists, chemists, and oceanographers, as a researcher and then team leader, Shimada developed and published such material on the distribution, spawning, and feeding patterns of tuna. He also coordinated international data collection and studies for the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission. Marking Shimada’s important contributions to the development of his field were the dedication of the Proceedings from the Symposium on the “The Changing Pacific Ocean in 1957 and 1958” in his memory, and the naming of a seamount--Shimada Seamount, southwest of Baja, California--in his honor. Shimada’s son, Allen Shimada, is currently a fisheries scientist with NOAA.
NOAA Ships Arrive at New Home Port in Hawaii
 On March 13, OSCAR ELTON SETTE arrived at her new home port at pier F-10 at historic Ford Island, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. HI’IALAKAI arrived March 18. The arrival of the two ships heralds the permanent presence of NOAA on Ford Island. KA’IMIMOANA will follow later this year. This is a major milestone in the multi-year, multi-phase construction of the NOAA Pacific Regional Center, a project to consolidate NOAA programs and operations on the island of Oahu into a single facility on Ford Island. Additional historic building renovations are to be completed in September 2007, allowing all NOAA ship operations to move out of Honolulu Harbor to Ford Island.
The U.S. Navy has authorized NOAA’s exclusive use of a portion of Ford Island for its operations function. The Ship Operations Facility project entails two former Navy piers (F-9 and F-10), small boat finger piers, a small boat ramp for launching and retrieval, site work for new utilities and roads, and a 12,000 square foot historic operations building. NOAA is paying for the $21 million renovation project under a Navy contract. See the NOAA news release for more details.
NOAA Ship HI'IALAKAI Deploys New Tsunami Buoys
 On March 17, the nation’s tsunami system got an upgrade with the help of NOAA ship HI’IALAKAI. During its first lengthy voyage and scientific mission of the season, HI’IALAKAI assisted with placing the Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunamis (DART™) system buoys.
HI’IALAKAI retrieved one buoy that will be refurbished in Hawaii and redeployed. HI’IALAKAI then sailed to another weigh point to launch the newest latest design in intelligent buoys to supplement the tsunami warning system that protects the U.S. Pacific coast.
USCG Trains GORDON GUNTER Crew in Helicopter Evacuation Safety
 On March 8, 2007, NOAA ship GORDON GUNTER and an HH65 rescue helicopter from the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Aviation Training Center (ATC) in Mobile, Alabama, participated in emergency evacuation drills while the ship was moored alongside the pier in Pascagoula Mississippi. A walkthrough of the vessel with ATC personnel was conducted to determine the best pickup locations and ship personnel were briefed on USCG’s helicopter evacuation capabilities.
Following the briefing, communication was established with Helo 6571 and the USCG evacuation checklist was completed. Two basket retrievals were staged from the aft deck, followed by a basket retrieval and litter retrieval off the bow. The demonstration concluded with ASTCS Walker’s retrieval off the ship’s bow via tagline and harness. As a result of the experience, GUNTER’s shipboard helo-evac plans are being updated with information acquired during the exercise.
NOAA Ships Conduct Fisheries Survey in Aleutian Islands
NOAA ships MILLER FREEMAN and OSCAR DYSON are operating in tandem to complete the Bogoslof Echo Integration Trawl (EIT) survey in the Aleutian Islands. EIT surveys are used to produce abundance assessments of walleye pollock stocks. The abundance estimates are subsequently consulted when setting the total allowable catch limits of this commercially important species.
The soon to be retired MILLER FREEMAN has established a database of EIT surveys stretching back more than 30 years. Before OSCAR DYSON takes over responsibility for these surveys, the two ships must be inter-calibrated to produce a statistically rigorous, numerical relationship to link new EIT data from OSCAR DYSON to the existing MILLER FREEMAN database. |
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| NOAA ship OSCAR DYSON off Umnak Island. Photo taken from NOAA ship MILLER FREEMAN. |
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| NOAA ship MILLER FREEMAN during EIT survey. Photo taken from NOAA ship OSCAR DYSON |
Treasures of NOAA's Ark Comes to Seattle
 Beginning March 3, 2007, the Pacific Science Center in downtown Seattle, Washington, will exhibit Treasures of NOAA's Ark Pioneers: People and Technology. The exhibit, which just finished a six month run at Nauticus in Norfolk, Virginia, will showcase artifacts representing 200 years of science, service and stewardship by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and its ancestor agencies –- from 19th century maps and charts to early scientific instruments that recall the agency’s proud heritage and legacy of service to the nation.
The exhibit will run from March 3 through September 3, 2007. For more information, visit the Pacific Science Center's Discover the Treasures of NOAA's Ark Web page.
New Contest for Students to Name New
NOAA Twin Hull Vessel
NOAA is holding a ship naming contest for a new NOAA hydrographic vessel. The contest is open to students in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.
The contest, which began February 1, runs through March 30, 2007. The winning entry will be announced in May.
The Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull Coast Mapping Vessel (SWATH CMV), the first ship of its kind to be built for NOAA, will map the seafloor in the coastal areas along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, Caribbean Sea and Great Lakes. Read the full NOAA news story.
NOAA G-IV Participates in Winter Storms Reconnaissance Project
 The NOAA Gulfstream-IV high-altitude jet arrived in Honolulu, Hawaii, on January 16 to serve the scientific interests of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) over the course of the next two months.
While conducting the Winter Storms Reconnaissance (WSR-07) project, the aircraft will fly extended patterns over the north Pacific, launching numerous dropwindsonde atmospheric profiling devices to more accurately characterize the environment of developing winter cyclones and snowstorms. Data from these expendable instruments will be screened aboard the aircraft by AOC meteorologists, transmitted to NCEP by satellite communication, and used to initialize NOAA’s most sophisticated forecasting models, to improve warnings of severe weather events.
Joining NOAA personnel on one of the missions in February will be Jessica Schwarz, a seventh grade science and math teacher from West Hawaii Explorations Middle School in Kona, Hawaii. Participating in the NOAA Teacher in the Air program, an offshoot of the NOAA Teacher at Sea program, she will write logs and lessons that correspond with the G-IV's research. Her work will be posted on the NOAA Teacher at Sea Web site.
You can read more about the project in the NOAA news story. If you'd like to read the daily reports on the GIV project, visit http://www.aoc.noaa.gov/article_WinterStorms_2007.htm
NOAA WP-3D Orion Aircraft Supports Ocean Winds Winter Experiment
 Kermit, NOAA's (N42RF) WP-3D Orion, arrived in St. John's Newfoundland, Canada, on January 17 to provide support for the 2007 Ocean Winds Winter Experiment. Ocean Winds is a continuing project whose objective is to improve our understanding of satellite-based ocean wind retrievals in limiting environmental conditions.
The crew flew its first mission on January 20, logging in five+ hours and catching two satellite overpasses, with the scientific crew very happy with the results. The crew flew again on January 22, completing a most successful seven-hour mission. To date, 38 percent of the project flight hours have been flown. Four more mission flights and the ferry home should use the remaining hours.
As during the previous project two years ago in Newfoundland, trying to accomplish these flights can be a challenge. Dr. Ad Stoffelen from the KNMI Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, who is working with the European A-Scat data, flew with the crew on the January 22 flight. He was quite impressed with the crew and NOAA's operation plus the effort the Aircraft Operations Center personnel made to get the flight off.
Read the NOAA News article about the completion of the successful mission. If you'd like to read the daily reports on the P3 project, visit http://www.aoc.noaa.gov/article_Ocean_Winds_2007.htm.
NOAA Diving Program Hosts US Federal Diving Programs Conference
On February 13 and 14 the NOAA Dive Center hosted the US Federal Diving Programs Conference, in Seattle, Washington. This conference brought together 30 individuals representing 14 federal agencies and military branches with individual diving programs. This was the first time the military pariticipated. Similar conferences in the past included only civil federal agencies.
There have been similar conferences of the civilian federal agencies in the past but this was the first to include the military side as well, represented by command members of the US Coast Guard, US Army, and the US Navy's dive programs. Other participants included the Environmental Protection Agency, National Park Service, US Geological Survey, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Fish & Wildlife Service, US Army Corps of Engineers, Minerals Management Service, US Forest Service, Department of Homeland Security, US Bureau of Reclamation, and NASA's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory.
RADM Samuel P. De Bow, Director, NOAA Commissioned Corps and Director, Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, was the first speaker at the conference. He introduced the group to NOAA diving and the progression it has made over the years. Each program presented the group with overviews of their operations, personnel, structures, and capabilities. The discussions ranged from challenges to federal dive programs--if there are ways to work collaboratively to make diving safer for all government divers--to a brief review of the USCG HEALY dive accident report.
At the conclusion of the talks on the second day, 14 of the attendees were also given a tour of the NOAA Ship RAINIER by LT Ben Evans and LT Eric Johnson. The tour introduced most of them to their first experience with a NOAA vessel and to the NOAA Corps.
NOAA Evaluating Quonset Point/Davisville, R.I., as Home Port for OKEANOS EXPLORER
NOAA is evaluating Quonset Point/Davisville, R.I., as the future home port of OKEANOS EXPLORER as part of an environmental assessment to be completed in the spring. Quonset Point/Davisville is near many labs and universities associated with the ship’s ocean exploration mission. It is also close to a new telecommunications center to be constructed on the University of Rhode Island’s Narragansett campus. Called the Inner Space Center, it will be the ocean equivalent to NASA’s space command center in Houston, Texas. The Inner Space Center would be able to link to OKEANOS EXPLORER via satellite and make it possible for scientists and educators to participate in ocean exploration cruises real-time without ever stepping foot on the ship.
Currently, the ship is still under Phase I conversion at Todd Pacific Shipyard in Seattle, WA. A request for bidding on Phase II will be sent out this summer. Conversion is expected to be completed in spring of 2008. OKEANOS EXPLORER is the first federal ship to be dedicated solely to ocean exploration.
Snow Survey Season Begins for NOAA Aircraft
 The snow survey season is now underway. In snow surveys, conducted by NOAA aircraft, snowpack and soil moisture measurement data is acquired to aid NOAA hydrologists and state water resource managers in predicting or planning for spring flooding or potential drought conditions. The Shrike N51RF flew a soil moisture survey December 7-8 in Minnesota and Wisconsin. For airborne snow survey info and pictures visit the National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center Snow (NOHRSC) Survey Web site.
Dr. Tom Carroll, Director of the National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center (NOHRSC) in Chanhassen, MN, will retire January 3, 2007. Deputy Director Don Cline will step up as Acting Director until a replacement for Dr. Carroll is selected. The Center manages the Airborne Snow Survey Program, which now serves 30 states from Maine to Washington to Arizona, and eight Canadian provinces, with a network of almost 2300 flight lines. OMAO and the Aircraft Operations Center have been involved with the Airborne Gamma Detection program for nearly 30 years under the guidance of Dr. Carroll. Many current and former NOAA Corps officers have served with the program. The program currently employs four AOC pilots and two aircraft. Another NOAA Corps officer serves as the Deputy Director of NOHRSC. The Shrike N51RF was original to the program and is still actively conducting surveys. In 2005 the Jetprop Commander N45RF replaced N53RF.
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