Ocean Exploration
What is required?
NOAA is requesting an increase of $10.0
million for the Ocean Exploration Initiative, established in
2001 to systematically search and investigate the oceans for
the purpose of discovery. This initiative proposes the most ambitious
chapter ever in the history of human discovery on Earth: the
exploration of the Earth's oceans. Although Ocean Exploration
is a NOAA-wide effort incorporating the effort of many line offices,
budget activity is located in the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric
Research's (OAR) Ocean and Great Lakes Research budget
subactivity.
Why do we need it?
Covering more than 70 percent of the
surface of the earth, with an average depth of 3,800 meters,
the oceans are the last, largely unexplored frontier on our planet.
In fact, ocean scientists estimate that only five percent of
our oceans have been explored. This initiative seeks to bring
a multi-disciplinary array of the best of our nation's ocean
scientists to ocean frontiers to discover new species, ocean
processes, cultural antiquities and artifacts, and biological
and mineral resources. The need to extend U.S. leadership in
Ocean Exploration was first articulated by the Stratton Commission
which led to the formation of NOAA. For the past three decades,
NOAA has pursued a course of ocean regulation and management
without ever developing a comprehensive exploration program.
Thus our science lacks a fundamental understanding of enormous
ocean regions and important ocean systems. In June 2000, a U.S.
panel of ocean scientists, explorers, and educators convened
to create history's first National Strategy for Ocean Exploration.
Their report, Discovering Earth's Final Frontier: A U.S. Strategy
for Ocean Exploration, is a responsible plan to undertake
new activities in ocean exploration.
Recent progress in technology permits us to completely rethink
how we conduct exploration and oceanographic studies. Developments
in biotechnology, sensors, telemetry, power sources, microcomputers
and materials science now permit the U.S. to dream of rivaling
space exploration in our ability to go to and study the undersea
frontier. We need not be limited by weather and blind sampling
from
ships, but like true explorers, can immerse ourselves in new
places and events. NOAA proposes to embark on a national endeavor,
to build on our initial efforts in ocean research, partner with
existing public, private, and academic ocean exploration programs
outside of NOAA, and to achieve international leadership in undersea
exploration and research.
What will we do?
In the FY2002 Initiative plan, NOAA's
Ocean Exploration Program will undertake several major and minor
interdisciplinary expeditions to explore unknown regions and
processes of the ocean. The regions planned for exploration in
the FY2002 initiative include: The Gulf of Mexico; areas of the
Pacific off California, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska; the South
Atlantic Bight; and the Gulf of Maine. These
expeditions will weave together five science themes integral
to ocean research. These themes were developed by NOAA scientists
and reflect the core science requirements articulated by the
U.S. Panel on Ocean Exploration. These themes are: