AMS 85 Dr. James R. Mahoney Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere | NOAA Assistant Administrator January 10, 2005 From Information to Action: Global Earth Observation System of Systems

2 Natural & Human Induced Disasters Human Health & Well-Being Energy Resources Climate Variability & Change Water Resources Weather Information, Forecasting & Warning Ecosystems Sustainable Agriculture & Desertification Oceans Benefits of Earth Observations

3 Earth Observations Value: Harmful Algal Blooms GOESS requires cross disciplinary partnerships Research & Operations = = OceanographersMeteorologistsBiologists

4 Earth Observations Value: Health Malaria killed more than a million people in 2003 a Primarily in developing world Early warning system a Temperature a Humidity a Vegetation a Soil Moisture Possible outbreak prevention AVHRR AVHRR-SST TOPEX-SSA SeaWiFS-Chl-a

5 Earth Observations Value: Air Quality Observations Wet deposition trends Aerosol composition Global ozone distributions Forest fire locations Improved Understanding Aerosol formation Nighttime chemistry Boundary layer Emissions Modeling Aerosol mechanisms Boundary conditions Data assimilation Operations Collaborators from many universities, companies, agencies, and countries

6 Earth Observations Value: Agriculture Production tied to healthy environment & sound planning Understanding El Niño/La Niña patterns a Worldwide benefits to agriculture a Help predict & understand droughts, harvests, potential crop damage a Make decisions based on sustainable agriculture practices

7 Earth Observations Value: Water Resources Observations Sound Decision Making Community Modeling and Service Delivery Precipitation Snowpack Soil Moisture Land use/cover Surface storage Streamflow Ecosystem Based Management

8 National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) Supported by Western Governors Key Components a Integrated National Drought Monitoring & Forecasting System a Multi-agency collaboration; NOAA lead a Facilitates information exchange between local, state and federal agencies a Proactive, Not Passive, Drought Response a Improve Drought Indicator Data/Networks (Physical, Hydrological, Socio-Economic, Impacts) a Integrate & Interpret that Data with Easily Accessible & Understandable Tools Near-term Outcome of Strategic Plan for the U.S. Integrated Earth Observing System 8

9 Administration’s Response to the U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy December 17, 2004 Executive Order: Committee on Ocean Policy U.S. Ocean Action Plan

10 Committee on Ocean Policy Chaired by chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality Cabinet level membership Will advise President and heads of agencies on policies concerning ocean-related matters Responsibilities: a Ocean science and technology a Ocean literacy and education a Ocean resource management

11 U.S. Ocean Action Plan Action Highlights Create a National Water Quality Monitoring Network Implementing New Legislation on Oceans and Human Health, Harmful Algal Blooms and Hypoxia Expanding NOAA’s Authority to Education and Outreach Improved Management of Coasts and Watersheds Share U.S. Ocean Science Expertise Abroad Support Marine and Multi-modal Transportation Integrate U.S. Ocean Observing Efforts into the Global Earth Observing System of Systems (GEOSS)

12 Indian Ocean Tsunami Tragedy NOAA deploying existing DART buoys to Indian Ocean Buoys transmit vital data to established satellite networks USGS real-time data and tide gauges information Increased coordination with affected countries Part of Global Earth Observing System of Systems (GOESS)

13 NOAA’s TsunamiReady Program Increased awareness/education Maximize warning dissemination methods Emergency management/NOAA cooperative effort 15 TsunamiReady Communities in 5 states a Including UCSB – first higher learning institution recognized

14 Focus on Education