The Eyes on the Ocean™ Newsletter is an informal way of keeping you up-to-date on U.S. IOOS® activities.

Click here to subscribe a new address or if you no longer want to receive the newsletter.

 Want to read this edition in a browser or check out the archive?  Visit us online!

From the Director:

Dear IOOS Community,

In the last couple of weeks, we’ve held some important meetings to discuss the direction of the IOOS Enterprise and plan for the future. Last week, the Directors of the IOOS Regions, the IOOS Association, and staff from the IOOS Office gathered for the Annual IOOS Fall Meeting in La Jolla, California. The agenda for the meeting included Inflation Reduction Working Sessions for the regions; discussions focused on Waves & Water Levels, Ecosystem Change Services; and Equitable Service Delivery across the entire network and workforce.  Other discussions included Strategic Communications Planning, and Sustainability Planning as well as presentations from Southern California regional stakeholders and ocean science and technology practitioners. The results of the week were very positive and the transformation and development of new coastal and climate resilience capabilities and capacity using existing and new technologies are very promising. The expanded collaboration and cooperation across the network is really impressive. 

This week, our federal Advisory Committee met in College Park, Maryland to advance their work on drafting recommendations to advise NOAA, the Interagency Ocean Observation Committee, and the IOOS office on Marine Life, Enterprise Excellence, and the National Oceanographic Partnership Program. The meeting also included a strategic session with the IOOC, presentations from the IOOS Office on IRA Funding Opportunities and partnership projects, and a briefing on the National Weather Service NCEP Environmental Modeling Center. The 1.5 day meeting was very productive and the committee expects to finalize recommendations in late spring or early summer.

One thread running through both the IOOS Association Fall Meeting and the IOOS Advisory Committee Meeting was the growing value of and enthusiasm for pan-regional cooperation and coordination within our system under the Inflation Reduction Act. This historic investment in our Regional Associations, $100 M, is already bearing fruit by opening up new opportunities to enhance and expand access to integrated services that are at the heart of our system. As our office continues to grow (we're looking for a Marine Life Coordinator!) and these historic investments from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act take effect, I'm truly excited to see where we go in 2024.

Thanks,
Carl

From the U.S. IOOS Office:

  • Last Call! IOOS Advisory Committee is Seeking New Members: NOAA is seeking new members for the IOOS Advisory Committee. The Notice of New Member Solicitation has been published in the Federal Register to fill 10 vacancies that will occur in September 2024. To learn more about eligibility and requirements to apply, please refer to the federal register notice (FRN). Nominations should be submitted no later than January 2, 2024. More information on this opportunity can be found here, and information on the committee and the current board members can be found here.
  • IOOS seeks Marine Life Program Coordinator: IOOS is looking to fill a remote position for a Marine Life Program Coordinator. The position will focus on leading the U.S. Animal Telemetry Network. Posting closes December 13!
  • Zack Baize Hired as Ocean Industry Economist (Info based Blue Economy): Zack has been on rotation to IOOS from the Department of Energy over the past year and has recently come onboard in a permanent capacity as an Ocean Industry Economist. In this capacity, he will continue to support the New Blue Economy/Ocean Enterprise activities associated with IOOS IRA investments, including serving as lead for the Ocean-based Climate Resilience Accelerators (OCRA) program and Marine Technology Society collaborative activities. Additionally, he will be adding Ocean Enterprise Study and NOAA commercialization activities to his portfolio. He has over 15 years of experience working in the energy and environmental space, including 10 years working on economic analysis and technology transfer with federally funded research and technologies. Prior to his work with the federal government Zack worked with renewable energy companies and service providers and several NGOs. He has a degree in political science and economics from the University of Kentucky and a degree in Energy and Environmental Economics from the University of Oxford.
  • GOMO Program Director Update: Good news about our partner organization, GOMO.  I am pleased to inform you that, through an open and competitive process, Dr. David Legler has been selected as the Global Ocean Monitoring and Observation program’s SES director. OAR’s GOMO program’s work is critical in advancing our understanding of the oceans, their role in Earth’s climate system, and the various ways in which oceanic conditions impact society. Gaining this knowledge is fundamental for informed decision making in areas such as climate policy, disaster preparedness, and ecosystem management. Given the growth of GOMO and its role in national and international fora, NOAA determined that the program warranted leadership at the Senior Executive Service (SES) level. David possesses a deep understanding of the complex scientific, technical, and policy challenges associated with global ocean monitoring. Congratulations David! 
  • From the IOOS Association: 
    • No update.

Observation Subsystem and Sensor Technologies:

  • Surface Current Mapping
    • SF BayCurrents App for tablet and mobile devices: Now for mobile & tablet devices, the BayCurrents is a mobile app delivers ultra high-resolution surface currents within the San Francisco Bay. The source for the surface current data is a numerical model operated by the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The resulting dataset contains current vector fields for hourly timestamps ranging from the recent past, to the present and up to 48 hours into the future. The complete vector dataset is downloaded by the app to allow autonomous offline operation. The SF BayCurrents is now available for Apple and Android. 
  • Gliders 
    • IOOS Hurricane Gliders: The IOOS-led Hurricane Glider team is wrapping up the Atlantic Hurricane season, which ends Nov 30. Across the Atlantic hurricane domain, ~80 gliders deployed for a variety of mission purposes contributed temperature and salinity profiles to the NOAA operational ocean model, RTOFS.  Roughly one-third of those gliders were deployed for hurricane missions, funded primarily via the 2022 Disaster Relief Supplemental Act, monitoring essential ocean features known to impact hurricane intensity (e.g. eddies, freshwater barrier layers, subsurface cold pools, etc). Numerous distributed partners were involved in this effort, including IOOS Regional Associations (MARACOOS, SECOORA, CARICOOS, GCOOS) and their academic member institutions, NOAA/AOML and CIMAS, NOAA/GOMO and WHOI, the NOAA/OMAO Uncrewed Systems Operations Center (UxSOC), NOAA/NDBC, and the U.S. Navy. This season included a U.S. Navy contribution of 12 gliders, deployed by IOOS partners and piloted by the U.S. Navy with guidance by IOOS partners.  Support for the U.S. Navy glider operations was provided by the OMAO UxSOC.  Season highlights included GCOOS/USF gliders capturing Hurricane Idalia and helping keep the RTOFS model on track, and continued co-location exercises with the AOML-coordinated Saildrones in several regions.  A model-observations analysis conducted throughout the season, led by Rutgers University, revealed impacts of glider and argo data on the RTOFS. These results were used by the NOAA/Environmental Modeling Center to inform RTOFS improvements.
  • Buoys & Moorings
    • Buoy retrieval in the Great Lakes: More buoys are being retrieved for the winter. Bringing the buoys in requires patience and many hands, as they are much bigger than one might expect. Take a look at a video of the retrieval process provided by University of Michigan’s Biological Station here. Most platforms are recovered for the winter, but that doesn’t mean that the data stops. This year, thanks to new tech and savvy partners, GLOS’s Winter Observations are more robust than ever, with a few of those Winter Season buoys live on Seagull.  
  • Harmful Algal Blooms 
    • NHABON Webinars: 
      • RESCHEDULED NHABON Webinar #10 - Sargassum Observing: Please join us for our next webinar on Sargassum Observing January 17, 2023 at 3-4pm ET. https://ioosassociation.org/nhabon/ 
  • Marine Life
    • IOOS seeks Marine Life Program Coordinator: IOOS is looking to fill a remote position for a Marine Life Program Coordinator. The position will focus on leading the U.S. Animal Telemetry Network. Posting closes December 13!
    • Request for Information (RFI): The National Strategy for Marine Biodiversity: The National Science and Technology Council’s Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology is developing a National Ocean Biodiversity Strategy. NOAA and Smithsonian are now leading a federal writing team to develop the strategy. The National Science Foundation has just released a public Request for Information (RFI) to ensure broad public input. This is your chance to make sure that your ideas and concerns are considered in how this important initiative goes forward. You can read more about this RFI here.
    • Ecosystems Under Stress: Restoring South Florida's Everglades and Coral Reefs: NOAA announced $4.2 million for a four-year research project geared towards understanding multi-stressor impacts on Florida's marine ecosystems under different climate change scenarios. This research is critical to habitat restoration projects that are already underway, including Mission: Iconic Reefs in NOAA's Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan in Southwest Florida. Read more here.
    • The Ocean Life Forum Report has been posted on the NOPP Website! It can be found here on the newly established Partnership Forum page, as well as in the NOPP Reports Table here.

Data Management and Cyberinfrastructure (DMAC) Subsystem and Tools Built on IOOS Data:

  • SAVE THE DATE! 2024 IOOS DMAC Code Sprint - May 21 - 23, Washington D.C.: We're pleased to announce that IOOS plans to host the 2024 DMAC Code Sprint in Washington D.C. with our partner MARACOOS! Save the dates of May 21 - 23, 2024 for the third DMAC community code sprint.  We're planning to host an in person event with the option for virtual participation for those who are unable to travel to be there in person. We'll be reaching out in the near future with more details about meeting logistics, sprint/activity planning, technologies we hope to use for the virtual component of the sprint, and all the rest. If you have any suggestions or input about the sprint, please post them in the #dmac channel in the IOOS Slack - https://ioos.slack.com. Use this link to join if you haven't our Slack workspace already.  As we have over the last few events, we expect to use Slack heavily during the sprint. If you already have ideas about code sprint projects, we recommend that you submit an issue to the IOOS Code Sprint repository, identifying the scope of that topic. This will help ensure each code sprint topic has a plan that can be executed during the code sprint week.
  • QARTOD
    • No update.
  • Artificial Intelligence
      • No update.

Modeling and Analysis Subsystem:   

  • FY2024 Coastal and Ocean Modeling Testbed Project: COMT aims to support projects that facilitate and accelerate the transition of models and model based technologies from research environments toward operational readiness. The U.S. IOOS Program is seeking to fund projects which advance new or existing solutions that address long standing and emerging coastal modeling and forecast product development challenges. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=350456. A recording of an informational webinar on the FY24 Coastal and Ocean Modeling Testbed (COMT) Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is available here https://ioos.noaa.gov/project/comt/. 
  • V3.0 IOOS Model Viewer Released: IOOS and the RPS Team released v3.0 of the IOOS Model Viewer (https://eds.ioos.us/map). This is a soft launch, to provide users access to newly upgraded visualizations and features. Some datasets from the original IOOS Model Viewer are still being implemented in v3.0, and will be available or repaired over the coming months. Users can still access all available datasets in the original IOOS Model Viewer (https://eds.ioos.us/om1/).

Around the Regions:

  • Applications Now Open for 2024 Undergraduate Fellowship Opportunity at GCOOS: Applicants are invited to apply for a six-month fellowship/scholarship opportunity for undergraduate students offered by the Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System (GCOOS). The six-month GCOOS Fellowship, supported through the Howard Scholarship Fund, supports travel expenses for the successful candidate to attend the 2024 Ocean Sciences meeting in New Orleans (Feb. 18-23, 2024). It also includes the opportunity to learn how ocean observing programs like GCOOS inform decision-making in support of a healthy and productive Gulf of Mexico and the communities that depend on it. Read more here. 
  • Resources From NWEM Data Access Webinar: In case you missed the Northwest Environmental Moorings data access webinar, or if you would like to review the content, the recordings are available on the NANOOS YouTube page. The webinar presentation slides, Northwest Environmental Moorings (NWEM) ERDDAP data server, and data manual can also be found at this link.
  • Meet the Winners of the 2023 Vembu Subramanian Ocean Scholars Award: In remembrance of Vembu Subramanian – our friend, colleague, and the SECOORA Data Manager – SECOORA established an award for the next generation of ocean experts to meet others in their field and present their work at meetings or conferences. The Vembu Subramanian Ocean Scholars Award gives the opportunity for undergraduate students, graduate students, and early career professionals to seek funding to facilitate their participation in their conference of choice. Read this article to learn more about the winning students and their upcoming presentations!
  • CeNCOOS’ Alex Harper Joins California Sea Grant: California Sea Grant is excited to announce that Alex Harper has joined its extension team. As a Climate Resilience Specialist, Harper will focus on strengthening coastal resilience and growing the Blue Economy through high-quality ocean information sharing. Harper joins California Sea Grant while also working as a program manager with the Central of Northern California Ocean Observing System (CeNCOOS), where she oversees the regional ocean observing and spearheads activities related to ocean acidification, hypoxia, marine carbon dioxide removal, as well as tribal and stakeholder engagement and communications. 

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility:

  • Engaging with High School Students: NANOOS was invited to participate in the first ever Maritime High School (MHS) Career Expo in SeaTac, WA, on Saturday 4 Nov. Rachel Wold joined over a dozen industry partners to talk with existing and prospective students and their families about the variety of careers and opportunities available in the maritime world. Current MHS students are already familiar with NANOOS from using NVS during in-class activities and Rachel’s contribution as a 10th grade mentor. This event helped expand knowledge of and collaboration between NANOOS and MHS. We look forward to many similar opportunities in the future! 

Interagency and International Collaboration/News:

  • UN Decade of Ocean Science For Sustainable Development Updates: 
    • Call for Decade Actions No. 06/2023 is open! Programmes and projects are solicited through regular Calls for Decade Actions every 6 months throughout the Decade. The Call for Decade Actions No. 06/2023 is now open for submissions. Co-design of Decade Programmes and Expressions of Interest for Decade Programmes are due 10 December 2023. Applications for Ocean Decade Projects are due 31 January 2024. Learn more here: https://forum.oceandecade.org/page/take-action 
  • Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) News:
    • Vacancy: Pacific Islands-GOOS (PI-GOOS) Coordinator: The Pacific Island - Global Ocean Observing System is a network of regional organizations established in 1998 aiming to raise awareness of, and support ocean observing systems in the Pacific Islands region. The Pacific Community (SPC) is the principal scientific and technical organisation in the Pacific region, and is seeking a PI-GOOS coordinator who will coordinate and manage the activities expected of the PI-GOOS programme. The role involves expanding the PI‐GOOS programme substantially by identifying gaps, supporting needs assessments, and advocating for strengthening ocean observation capacity of Pacific Island Countries and Territories as well as improving seasonal predictions of weather and climate. Additionally, the successful candidate will represent the region in relevant forums, conduct stakeholder engagement and work internally within SPC and with partners to secure funding opportunities. Deadline for application: 10 December at 11:59 pm (Fiji time) via http://careers.spc.int/. Read more here.  
  • Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) News:
    • Another Round of Pioneer MAB At-Sea Tests Completed: A team of OOI Coastal and Global Scale Nodes (CGSN) scientists and engineers returned to Woods Hole, MA aboard the R/V Neil Armstrong on November 4, having successfully completed another round of tests of mooring equipment and site location surveys for the proposed relocation of the Coastal Pioneer Array to the Mid-Atlantic Bight (MAB), off the coast of Cape Hatteras, NC. Read more here. 
  • NOAA Seeks Nominations for Marine Fisheries Advisory Council: NOAA Fisheries seeks nominations to fill vacancies on the Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee. Nominations close December 15, 2023. MAFAC is an advisory group that researches, evaluates, and provides advice and recommendations to the Secretary and NOAA on agency policies, activities, science, conservation, and regulatory programs critical to the mission and goals of NOAA Fisheries. Committee members are highly qualified, diverse individuals with experience in commercial, recreational, aquaculture, and non-commercial fisheries and businesses; seafood industry, including processing, marketing, restaurants, and related industries; marine, ecosystems, or protected resources management and conservation; and human dimensions or social sciences associated with living marine resources and working waterfronts. A letter of interest and resume are due by December 15, 2023; full details on the opportunity, including instructions for submitting nominations, can be found here. NOAA Fisheries strives to ensure MAFAC members represent a diversity of individuals and interests. We encourage nominations from all those interested across the country.
  • Fifth National Climate Assessment (NCA5) Now Available: The Fifth National Climate Assessment is the U.S. Government’s preeminent report on climate change impacts, risks, and responses. It is a congressionally mandated interagency effort that provides the scientific foundation to support informed decision-making across the United States. Learn more and read the report here. 
  • RFI to Inform National Plan for Civil Earth Observations: A request for information (RFI) posted on the Federal Register last week. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) requests public input and seeks information from stakeholders to inform the development of the congressionally mandated National Plan for Civil Earth Observations. Click here to view the RFI and provide comments on the first draft of the 2023 National Plan.
  • CO-OPS Expands the Lower Columbia River PORTS®: A new water level station at the TEMCO grain facility in Kalama, Washington, will help pilots more safely navigate the Lower Columbia River between Longview, Washington, and Saint Helens, Oregon. The new station alleviates the need for real-time oceanographic observations to support daily maritime operations in an area prone to major water level fluctuations. NOAA will manage data dissemination. Station equipment and installation were sponsored by the Port of Kalama, and long-term operations will be assumed by the Port of Portland. The new station is integrated into NOAA’s Lower Columbia River Physical Oceanographic Real-time System, or PORTS, to collect water level and air pressure data in real time. With the addition of Kalama, the PORTS now includes two long-term water level stations and six locally sponsored stations. Station data will be shared with NOAA’s Northwest River Forecast Center.
  • CO-OPS Expands Portsmouth PORTS®: CO-OPS recently installed a buoy-mounted current meter in the Piscataqua River in partnership with the U.S. Navy. The new sensor collects and delivers real-time tidal current measurements. The sensor and its data, which are part of NOAA’s Portsmouth Physical Oceanographic Real-time System, or PORTS, will improve safe and efficient navigation in an area known for strong currents. PORTS, an integrated system of sensors concentrated in seaports across the U.S., delivers accurate and reliable data about environmental conditions in real time. The expansion supports the CO-OPS mission to provide reliable real-time data to the public and maritime community.
  • CO-OPS and NGS Support International Training in Costa Rica: CO-OPS and NGS supported a Spanish language training workshop held in Puntarenas, Costa Rica. The class, titled “Training Course on Tides and Sea Levels: Stations, Operations, and Products,” was funded by the International Hydrographic Organization, the International Maritime Organization, and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO. Critical support was also provided by personnel at the Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica and the Central American Maritime Transport Commission. Thirty-one water-level practitioners from 16 Central and South American countries attended classes on tidal theory; instrumentation; operations and maintenance; and data quality, dissemination, and applications. The training included a hands-on site visit for participants to observe Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica’s tide gauge in Quepos and practice leveling techniques in the field. Students also networked to foster international collaboration and to support each organization’s water level and storm-monitoring applications.
  • Recon Completed for New Reference Stations: NOAA Foundation Continuously Operating Reference Stations (FCORS) provide Global Navigation Satellite System data, supporting three-dimensional positioning, meteorology, space weather, and geophysical applications throughout the United States. The new NGS FCORS installation and maintenance contractor has successfully conducted reconnaissance missions for upcoming FCORS installations in the following locations: Cold Bay, Alaska; Fairbanks, Alaska; Kitt Peak, Arizona; Pie Town, New Mexico; Fort Davis, Texas; and Apache Point, New Mexico. Several NGS staff met with the contractor staff and accompanied and advised them during their recon missions. Special recognition is extended to Lynda Bell, Ben Gavin, Kevin Jordan, and John Galetkza for their invaluable contributions. Lynda Bell held a meeting with the contractor in Anchorage to share her reconnaissance findings from her July visit to Fairbanks, while Ben, Kevin, and John accompanied other contractor staff during the reconnaissance efforts in Pie Town, Fort Davis, and Apache Point. The FCORS contractor will proceed with the development of reconnaissance reports and station designs over the next month, with the potential station installations starting in the third quarter of FY24.
  • NOAA unveils new tool for exploring coral reef data: NOAA’s National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) launched a new data visualization tool, which will provide free and easy-to-access information on the status of U.S. coral reefs. Now stakeholders, scientists, managers and students have a one-stop information hub to access and understand NOAA’s shallow tropical coral data that they can customize to focus on coral trends across specific timescales, locations, coral or fish species, climate data and socioeconomics.
  • 2023 Lake Erie Algal Bloom More Severe Than Predicted: NOAA scientists will examine the differences between previous years’ predicted and observed harmful algal bloom severity to evaluate the seasonal forecast models. The seasonal forecast uses an ensemble of different models, which factor in the lake’s phosphorus loading during the spring and early summer. The 2023 western Lake Erie cyanobacterial bloom had a severity index, or SI, of 5.3, a figure that is moderately severe and less intense than 2022 — which had an SI of 6.8 — but the 2023 seasonal forecasted bloom severity was originally predicted to be between 2 and 4.5. Based on satellite imagery, the 2023 forecast was amended through July 25, with a predicted severity range of 4.5 to 5.5.

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The Eyes on the Ocean™ Newsletter is an informal way of keeping you up-to-date on U.S. IOOS® activities.

Click here to subscribe a new address or if you no longer want to receive the newsletter.

 Want to read this edition in a browser or check out the archive?  Visit us online!

From the Director:

Dear IOOS Community,

In the last couple of weeks, we’ve held some important meetings to discuss the direction of the IOOS Enterprise and plan for the future. Last week, the Directors of the IOOS Regions, the IOOS Association, and staff from the IOOS Office gathered for the Annual IOOS Fall Meeting in La Jolla, California. The agenda for the meeting included Inflation Reduction Working Sessions for the regions; discussions focused on Waves & Water Levels, Ecosystem Change Services; and Equitable Service Delivery across the entire network and workforce.  Other discussions included Strategic Communications Planning, and Sustainability Planning as well as presentations from Southern California regional stakeholders and ocean science and technology practitioners. The results of the week were very positive and the transformation and development of new coastal and climate resilience capabilities and capacity using existing and new technologies are very promising. The expanded collaboration and cooperation across the network is really impressive. 

This week, our federal Advisory Committee met in College Park, Maryland to advance their work on drafting recommendations to advise NOAA, the Interagency Ocean Observation Committee, and the IOOS office on Marine Life, Enterprise Excellence, and the National Oceanographic Partnership Program. The meeting also included a strategic session with the IOOC, presentations from the IOOS Office on IRA Funding Opportunities and partnership projects, and a briefing on the National Weather Service NCEP Environmental Modeling Center. The 1.5 day meeting was very productive and the committee expects to finalize recommendations in late spring or early summer.

One thread running through both the IOOS Association Fall Meeting and the IOOS Advisory Committee Meeting was the growing value of and enthusiasm for pan-regional cooperation and coordination within our system under the Inflation Reduction Act. This historic investment in our Regional Associations, $100 M, is already bearing fruit by opening up new opportunities to enhance and expand access to integrated services that are at the heart of our system. As our office continues to grow (we're looking for a Marine Life Coordinator!) and these historic investments from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act take effect, I'm truly excited to see where we go in 2024.

Thanks,
Carl

From the U.S. IOOS Office:

  • Last Call! IOOS Advisory Committee is Seeking New Members: NOAA is seeking new members for the IOOS Advisory Committee. The Notice of New Member Solicitation has been published in the Federal Register to fill 10 vacancies that will occur in September 2024. To learn more about eligibility and requirements to apply, please refer to the federal register notice (FRN). Nominations should be submitted no later than January 2, 2024. More information on this opportunity can be found here, and information on the committee and the current board members can be found here.
  • IOOS seeks Marine Life Program Coordinator: IOOS is looking to fill a remote position for a Marine Life Program Coordinator. The position will focus on leading the U.S. Animal Telemetry Network. Posting closes December 13!
  • Zack Baize Hired as Ocean Industry Economist (Info based Blue Economy): Zack has been on rotation to IOOS from the Department of Energy over the past year and has recently come onboard in a permanent capacity as an Ocean Industry Economist. In this capacity, he will continue to support the New Blue Economy/Ocean Enterprise activities associated with IOOS IRA investments, including serving as lead for the Ocean-based Climate Resilience Accelerators (OCRA) program and Marine Technology Society collaborative activities. Additionally, he will be adding Ocean Enterprise Study and NOAA commercialization activities to his portfolio. He has over 15 years of experience working in the energy and environmental space, including 10 years working on economic analysis and technology transfer with federally funded research and technologies. Prior to his work with the federal government Zack worked with renewable energy companies and service providers and several NGOs. He has a degree in political science and economics from the University of Kentucky and a degree in Energy and Environmental Economics from the University of Oxford.
  • GOMO Program Director Update: Good news about our partner organization, GOMO.  I am pleased to inform you that, through an open and competitive process, Dr. David Legler has been selected as the Global Ocean Monitoring and Observation program’s SES director. OAR’s GOMO program’s work is critical in advancing our understanding of the oceans, their role in Earth’s climate system, and the various ways in which oceanic conditions impact society. Gaining this knowledge is fundamental for informed decision making in areas such as climate policy, disaster preparedness, and ecosystem management. Given the growth of GOMO and its role in national and international fora, NOAA determined that the program warranted leadership at the Senior Executive Service (SES) level. David possesses a deep understanding of the complex scientific, technical, and policy challenges associated with global ocean monitoring. Congratulations David! 
  • From the IOOS Association: 
    • No update.

Observation Subsystem and Sensor Technologies:

  • Surface Current Mapping
    • SF BayCurrents App for tablet and mobile devices: Now for mobile & tablet devices, the BayCurrents is a mobile app delivers ultra high-resolution surface currents within the San Francisco Bay. The source for the surface current data is a numerical model operated by the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The resulting dataset contains current vector fields for hourly timestamps ranging from the recent past, to the present and up to 48 hours into the future. The complete vector dataset is downloaded by the app to allow autonomous offline operation. The SF BayCurrents is now available for Apple and Android. 
  • Gliders 
    • IOOS Hurricane Gliders: The IOOS-led Hurricane Glider team is wrapping up the Atlantic Hurricane season, which ends Nov 30. Across the Atlantic hurricane domain, ~80 gliders deployed for a variety of mission purposes contributed temperature and salinity profiles to the NOAA operational ocean model, RTOFS.  Roughly one-third of those gliders were deployed for hurricane missions, funded primarily via the 2022 Disaster Relief Supplemental Act, monitoring essential ocean features known to impact hurricane intensity (e.g. eddies, freshwater barrier layers, subsurface cold pools, etc). Numerous distributed partners were involved in this effort, including IOOS Regional Associations (MARACOOS, SECOORA, CARICOOS, GCOOS) and their academic member institutions, NOAA/AOML and CIMAS, NOAA/GOMO and WHOI, the NOAA/OMAO Uncrewed Systems Operations Center (UxSOC), NOAA/NDBC, and the U.S. Navy. This season included a U.S. Navy contribution of 12 gliders, deployed by IOOS partners and piloted by the U.S. Navy with guidance by IOOS partners.  Support for the U.S. Navy glider operations was provided by the OMAO UxSOC.  Season highlights included GCOOS/USF gliders capturing Hurricane Idalia and helping keep the RTOFS model on track, and continued co-location exercises with the AOML-coordinated Saildrones in several regions.  A model-observations analysis conducted throughout the season, led by Rutgers University, revealed impacts of glider and argo data on the RTOFS. These results were used by the NOAA/Environmental Modeling Center to inform RTOFS improvements.
  • Buoys & Moorings
    • Buoy retrieval in the Great Lakes: More buoys are being retrieved for the winter. Bringing the buoys in requires patience and many hands, as they are much bigger than one might expect. Take a look at a video of the retrieval process provided by University of Michigan’s Biological Station here. Most platforms are recovered for the winter, but that doesn’t mean that the data stops. This year, thanks to new tech and savvy partners, GLOS’s Winter Observations are more robust than ever, with a few of those Winter Season buoys live on Seagull.  
  • Harmful Algal Blooms 
    • NHABON Webinars: 
      • RESCHEDULED NHABON Webinar #10 - Sargassum Observing: Please join us for our next webinar on Sargassum Observing January 17, 2023 at 3-4pm ET. https://ioosassociation.org/nhabon/ 
  • Marine Life
    • IOOS seeks Marine Life Program Coordinator: IOOS is looking to fill a remote position for a Marine Life Program Coordinator. The position will focus on leading the U.S. Animal Telemetry Network. Posting closes December 13!
    • Request for Information (RFI): The National Strategy for Marine Biodiversity: The National Science and Technology Council’s Subcommittee on Ocean Science and Technology is developing a National Ocean Biodiversity Strategy. NOAA and Smithsonian are now leading a federal writing team to develop the strategy. The National Science Foundation has just released a public Request for Information (RFI) to ensure broad public input. This is your chance to make sure that your ideas and concerns are considered in how this important initiative goes forward. You can read more about this RFI here.
    • Ecosystems Under Stress: Restoring South Florida's Everglades and Coral Reefs: NOAA announced $4.2 million for a four-year research project geared towards understanding multi-stressor impacts on Florida's marine ecosystems under different climate change scenarios. This research is critical to habitat restoration projects that are already underway, including Mission: Iconic Reefs in NOAA's Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan in Southwest Florida. Read more here.
    • The Ocean Life Forum Report has been posted on the NOPP Website! It can be found here on the newly established Partnership Forum page, as well as in the NOPP Reports Table here.

Data Management and Cyberinfrastructure (DMAC) Subsystem and Tools Built on IOOS Data:

  • SAVE THE DATE! 2024 IOOS DMAC Code Sprint - May 21 - 23, Washington D.C.: We're pleased to announce that IOOS plans to host the 2024 DMAC Code Sprint in Washington D.C. with our partner MARACOOS! Save the dates of May 21 - 23, 2024 for the third DMAC community code sprint.  We're planning to host an in person event with the option for virtual participation for those who are unable to travel to be there in person. We'll be reaching out in the near future with more details about meeting logistics, sprint/activity planning, technologies we hope to use for the virtual component of the sprint, and all the rest. If you have any suggestions or input about the sprint, please post them in the #dmac channel in the IOOS Slack - https://ioos.slack.com. Use this link to join if you haven't our Slack workspace already.  As we have over the last few events, we expect to use Slack heavily during the sprint. If you already have ideas about code sprint projects, we recommend that you submit an issue to the IOOS Code Sprint repository, identifying the scope of that topic. This will help ensure each code sprint topic has a plan that can be executed during the code sprint week.
  • QARTOD
    • No update.
  • Artificial Intelligence
      • No update.

Modeling and Analysis Subsystem:   

  • FY2024 Coastal and Ocean Modeling Testbed Project: COMT aims to support projects that facilitate and accelerate the transition of models and model based technologies from research environments toward operational readiness. The U.S. IOOS Program is seeking to fund projects which advance new or existing solutions that address long standing and emerging coastal modeling and forecast product development challenges. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=350456. A recording of an informational webinar on the FY24 Coastal and Ocean Modeling Testbed (COMT) Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is available here https://ioos.noaa.gov/project/comt/. 
  • V3.0 IOOS Model Viewer Released: IOOS and the RPS Team released v3.0 of the IOOS Model Viewer (https://eds.ioos.us/map). This is a soft launch, to provide users access to newly upgraded visualizations and features. Some datasets from the original IOOS Model Viewer are still being implemented in v3.0, and will be available or repaired over the coming months. Users can still access all available datasets in the original IOOS Model Viewer (https://eds.ioos.us/om1/).

Around the Regions:

  • Applications Now Open for 2024 Undergraduate Fellowship Opportunity at GCOOS: Applicants are invited to apply for a six-month fellowship/scholarship opportunity for undergraduate students offered by the Gulf of Mexico Coastal Ocean Observing System (GCOOS). The six-month GCOOS Fellowship, supported through the Howard Scholarship Fund, supports travel expenses for the successful candidate to attend the 2024 Ocean Sciences meeting in New Orleans (Feb. 18-23, 2024). It also includes the opportunity to learn how ocean observing programs like GCOOS inform decision-making in support of a healthy and productive Gulf of Mexico and the communities that depend on it. Read more here. 
  • Resources From NWEM Data Access Webinar: In case you missed the Northwest Environmental Moorings data access webinar, or if you would like to review the content, the recordings are available on the NANOOS YouTube page. The webinar presentation slides, Northwest Environmental Moorings (NWEM) ERDDAP data server, and data manual can also be found at this link.
  • Meet the Winners of the 2023 Vembu Subramanian Ocean Scholars Award: In remembrance of Vembu Subramanian – our friend, colleague, and the SECOORA Data Manager – SECOORA established an award for the next generation of ocean experts to meet others in their field and present their work at meetings or conferences. The Vembu Subramanian Ocean Scholars Award gives the opportunity for undergraduate students, graduate students, and early career professionals to seek funding to facilitate their participation in their conference of choice. Read this article to learn more about the winning students and their upcoming presentations!
  • CeNCOOS’ Alex Harper Joins California Sea Grant: California Sea Grant is excited to announce that Alex Harper has joined its extension team. As a Climate Resilience Specialist, Harper will focus on strengthening coastal resilience and growing the Blue Economy through high-quality ocean information sharing. Harper joins California Sea Grant while also working as a program manager with the Central of Northern California Ocean Observing System (CeNCOOS), where she oversees the regional ocean observing and spearheads activities related to ocean acidification, hypoxia, marine carbon dioxide removal, as well as tribal and stakeholder engagement and communications. 

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility:

  • Engaging with High School Students: NANOOS was invited to participate in the first ever Maritime High School (MHS) Career Expo in SeaTac, WA, on Saturday 4 Nov. Rachel Wold joined over a dozen industry partners to talk with existing and prospective students and their families about the variety of careers and opportunities available in the maritime world. Current MHS students are already familiar with NANOOS from using NVS during in-class activities and Rachel’s contribution as a 10th grade mentor. This event helped expand knowledge of and collaboration between NANOOS and MHS. We look forward to many similar opportunities in the future! 

Interagency and International Collaboration/News:

  • UN Decade of Ocean Science For Sustainable Development Updates: 
    • Call for Decade Actions No. 06/2023 is open! Programmes and projects are solicited through regular Calls for Decade Actions every 6 months throughout the Decade. The Call for Decade Actions No. 06/2023 is now open for submissions. Co-design of Decade Programmes and Expressions of Interest for Decade Programmes are due 10 December 2023. Applications for Ocean Decade Projects are due 31 January 2024. Learn more here: https://forum.oceandecade.org/page/take-action 
  • Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) News:
    • Vacancy: Pacific Islands-GOOS (PI-GOOS) Coordinator: The Pacific Island - Global Ocean Observing System is a network of regional organizations established in 1998 aiming to raise awareness of, and support ocean observing systems in the Pacific Islands region. The Pacific Community (SPC) is the principal scientific and technical organisation in the Pacific region, and is seeking a PI-GOOS coordinator who will coordinate and manage the activities expected of the PI-GOOS programme. The role involves expanding the PI‐GOOS programme substantially by identifying gaps, supporting needs assessments, and advocating for strengthening ocean observation capacity of Pacific Island Countries and Territories as well as improving seasonal predictions of weather and climate. Additionally, the successful candidate will represent the region in relevant forums, conduct stakeholder engagement and work internally within SPC and with partners to secure funding opportunities. Deadline for application: 10 December at 11:59 pm (Fiji time) via http://careers.spc.int/. Read more here.  
  • Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) News:
    • Another Round of Pioneer MAB At-Sea Tests Completed: A team of OOI Coastal and Global Scale Nodes (CGSN) scientists and engineers returned to Woods Hole, MA aboard the R/V Neil Armstrong on November 4, having successfully completed another round of tests of mooring equipment and site location surveys for the proposed relocation of the Coastal Pioneer Array to the Mid-Atlantic Bight (MAB), off the coast of Cape Hatteras, NC. Read more here. 
  • NOAA Seeks Nominations for Marine Fisheries Advisory Council: NOAA Fisheries seeks nominations to fill vacancies on the Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee. Nominations close December 15, 2023. MAFAC is an advisory group that researches, evaluates, and provides advice and recommendations to the Secretary and NOAA on agency policies, activities, science, conservation, and regulatory programs critical to the mission and goals of NOAA Fisheries. Committee members are highly qualified, diverse individuals with experience in commercial, recreational, aquaculture, and non-commercial fisheries and businesses; seafood industry, including processing, marketing, restaurants, and related industries; marine, ecosystems, or protected resources management and conservation; and human dimensions or social sciences associated with living marine resources and working waterfronts. A letter of interest and resume are due by December 15, 2023; full details on the opportunity, including instructions for submitting nominations, can be found here. NOAA Fisheries strives to ensure MAFAC members represent a diversity of individuals and interests. We encourage nominations from all those interested across the country.
  • Fifth National Climate Assessment (NCA5) Now Available: The Fifth National Climate Assessment is the U.S. Government’s preeminent report on climate change impacts, risks, and responses. It is a congressionally mandated interagency effort that provides the scientific foundation to support informed decision-making across the United States. Learn more and read the report here. 
  • RFI to Inform National Plan for Civil Earth Observations: A request for information (RFI) posted on the Federal Register last week. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) requests public input and seeks information from stakeholders to inform the development of the congressionally mandated National Plan for Civil Earth Observations. Click here to view the RFI and provide comments on the first draft of the 2023 National Plan.
  • CO-OPS Expands the Lower Columbia River PORTS®: A new water level station at the TEMCO grain facility in Kalama, Washington, will help pilots more safely navigate the Lower Columbia River between Longview, Washington, and Saint Helens, Oregon. The new station alleviates the need for real-time oceanographic observations to support daily maritime operations in an area prone to major water level fluctuations. NOAA will manage data dissemination. Station equipment and installation were sponsored by the Port of Kalama, and long-term operations will be assumed by the Port of Portland. The new station is integrated into NOAA’s Lower Columbia River Physical Oceanographic Real-time System, or PORTS, to collect water level and air pressure data in real time. With the addition of Kalama, the PORTS now includes two long-term water level stations and six locally sponsored stations. Station data will be shared with NOAA’s Northwest River Forecast Center.
  • CO-OPS Expands Portsmouth PORTS®: CO-OPS recently installed a buoy-mounted current meter in the Piscataqua River in partnership with the U.S. Navy. The new sensor collects and delivers real-time tidal current measurements. The sensor and its data, which are part of NOAA’s Portsmouth Physical Oceanographic Real-time System, or PORTS, will improve safe and efficient navigation in an area known for strong currents. PORTS, an integrated system of sensors concentrated in seaports across the U.S., delivers accurate and reliable data about environmental conditions in real time. The expansion supports the CO-OPS mission to provide reliable real-time data to the public and maritime community.
  • CO-OPS and NGS Support International Training in Costa Rica: CO-OPS and NGS supported a Spanish language training workshop held in Puntarenas, Costa Rica. The class, titled “Training Course on Tides and Sea Levels: Stations, Operations, and Products,” was funded by the International Hydrographic Organization, the International Maritime Organization, and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO. Critical support was also provided by personnel at the Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica and the Central American Maritime Transport Commission. Thirty-one water-level practitioners from 16 Central and South American countries attended classes on tidal theory; instrumentation; operations and maintenance; and data quality, dissemination, and applications. The training included a hands-on site visit for participants to observe Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica’s tide gauge in Quepos and practice leveling techniques in the field. Students also networked to foster international collaboration and to support each organization’s water level and storm-monitoring applications.
  • Recon Completed for New Reference Stations: NOAA Foundation Continuously Operating Reference Stations (FCORS) provide Global Navigation Satellite System data, supporting three-dimensional positioning, meteorology, space weather, and geophysical applications throughout the United States. The new NGS FCORS installation and maintenance contractor has successfully conducted reconnaissance missions for upcoming FCORS installations in the following locations: Cold Bay, Alaska; Fairbanks, Alaska; Kitt Peak, Arizona; Pie Town, New Mexico; Fort Davis, Texas; and Apache Point, New Mexico. Several NGS staff met with the contractor staff and accompanied and advised them during their recon missions. Special recognition is extended to Lynda Bell, Ben Gavin, Kevin Jordan, and John Galetkza for their invaluable contributions. Lynda Bell held a meeting with the contractor in Anchorage to share her reconnaissance findings from her July visit to Fairbanks, while Ben, Kevin, and John accompanied other contractor staff during the reconnaissance efforts in Pie Town, Fort Davis, and Apache Point. The FCORS contractor will proceed with the development of reconnaissance reports and station designs over the next month, with the potential station installations starting in the third quarter of FY24.
  • NOAA unveils new tool for exploring coral reef data: NOAA’s National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) launched a new data visualization tool, which will provide free and easy-to-access information on the status of U.S. coral reefs. Now stakeholders, scientists, managers and students have a one-stop information hub to access and understand NOAA’s shallow tropical coral data that they can customize to focus on coral trends across specific timescales, locations, coral or fish species, climate data and socioeconomics.
  • 2023 Lake Erie Algal Bloom More Severe Than Predicted: NOAA scientists will examine the differences between previous years’ predicted and observed harmful algal bloom severity to evaluate the seasonal forecast models. The seasonal forecast uses an ensemble of different models, which factor in the lake’s phosphorus loading during the spring and early summer. The 2023 western Lake Erie cyanobacterial bloom had a severity index, or SI, of 5.3, a figure that is moderately severe and less intense than 2022 — which had an SI of 6.8 — but the 2023 seasonal forecasted bloom severity was originally predicted to be between 2 and 4.5. Based on satellite imagery, the 2023 forecast was amended through July 25, with a predicted severity range of 4.5 to 5.5.

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