NURP is part of NOAA's Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) line
office. Over the years, the program name has changed, but undersea
research has been an important part of NOAA since the agency was
born in 1970. NURP headquarters' current responsibilities include:
- Serve as program advocate within NOAA, the Department of Commerce,
and other government agencies;
- Participate in NOAA strategic planning;
- Process grants and reports for the regional centers and other
relevant activities (e.g., Jason Project);
- coordinate communication among the network of regional Centers;
- Facilitate NOAA and science community access to National Science
Foundation (NSF) and Navy undersea assets (e.g., DSV Alvin, ROV
Jason-Medea, nuclear submarine NR-1);
- Coordinate diving safety and physiology research programs (e.g.,
support for DAN, development of the new NOAA Dive Manual);
- Promote access for the U.S. research community to international
deep sea assets (e.g., Japanese and Russian assets);
- Serve as a clearinghouse for undersea information for other
federal agencies and decision makers.
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