United States IOOS - Program update

The United States Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) is a user-driven, coordinated network of people, organizations, and technology that generate and disseminate continuous data about our coastal waters, Great Lakes, and oceans. IOOS is intended to be a major shift in approach to ocean observing, drawing together the vast network of disparate, federal and non-federal observing systems to produce a cohesive suite of data, information, and products at a sufficient geographic and temporal scale to support decision-making. As the system matures, IOOS is expected to advance beyond its current science and management applications toward an instrument of policy and governance. Current efforts only scratch the surface of what we need to know about our oceans and coasts to fully assess their impact on commerce and transportation, weather and climate, and ecosystems. The power of IOOS is in its partnerships. Seventeen United States federal agencies and eleven Regional Coastal Ocean Observing Systems (RCOOSs) share responsibility for the design, implementation, operation, and improvement of the United States. IOOS over time. Two interdependent components constitute the United State IOOS: (1) global ocean component and (2) coastal component. The latter includes the national set of observations for the Great Lakes and the EEZ, as well as the network of RCOOSs. Federal agencies are responsible for the design, operation, and improvement of both the global component and the national network of observations. RCOOSs augment existing federal observing capacity around the nation and ensure strong customer focus and connection. Each RCOOS, which is comprised of a series of sub-regional observing systems, is designed and managed by a single Regional Association (RA). Within the United States, an Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) will enable the United States to make more effective use of existing resources, new knowledge, and advances in technology. The rapid growth in the number of people living in immediate proximity to the ocean is placing increased demand on coastal ecosystems, threatening their integrity and capacity to provide goods and services such as storm mitigation. This demographic trend is also placing an increasingly large segment of our society at risk to natural hazards. Reducing risks from a broad range of threats associated with the oceans, including waterborne toxins, storm surge, coastal flooding, and unsafe marine transportation, depends on the ability to characterize and understand complex coastal-ocean phenomena, rapidly detect changes in the marine ecosystems and living resources, predict changes in our coastal-ocean environments, and adapt to these changes. NOAA continues to develop new approaches to ocean management to effectively address these challenges. Thousands of data collection and management systems from satellites orbiting above the Earth to sensors trolling along the bottom of the ocean are gathering data. Many of these systems collect, distribute, and archive the same data (temperature, salinity, etc.) but in different ways. This disparity results in data that cannot be combined or analyzed together, are not easily accessible, and may never be known to exist. Consequently, time and resources are wasted converting disparate data and potentially duplicating data collections. Data from existing observing systems would be much more useful and timely if it were linked and presented in an integrated, standardized way. The United States Integrated Ocean Observing System is our nation's contribution to the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS)?the ocean component of a worldwide effort to build a Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS). The US IOOS is a national endeavor, comprising a coastal (national) and global component. The national coastal component includes both federal and regional contributions to monitor and manage the Great Lakes and the entire U.S. ocean environment.