NOAA03-R924
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Aja Sae-Kung
7/25/03
 NOAA News Releases 2003
NOAA Home Page
NOAA Public Affairs

NOAA AWARDS OVER $3.7 MILLION TO WOODS HOLE
OCEANOGRAPHIC INSTITUTE

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) today announced a grant totaling $3,715,900 to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute for various ocean and atmosphere research projects. NOAA is an agency of the Commerce Department.

This grant will fund:

  • A program in marine bio-toxins and harmful algae.
  • Studies into the long-term evolution and coupling of the boundary layers in the stratus deck regions of the eastern Pacific.
  • Carbon dynamics of North America boreal forest regrowth.
  • Variations of CO2 concentration, transport and divergence in the Atlantic.
  • Ocean reference stations.
  • The ARGO Float Project, which emphasizes global ocean observations for understanding and predicting climate variability.

“We are constantly working to improve the understanding of our environment and to strengthen local and regional initiatives like those at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute,” said retired Navy Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Ph.D., undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator. “These grants help provide new bodies of knowledge and actively support efforts that reinforce NOAA’s and the Bush Administration’s commitment to the environment.”

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute is a private, non-profit research facility dedicated to the study of marine science and the education of marine scientists. Its primary mission is to develop and communicate a fundamental understanding of the processes and characteristics governing how the oceans function and interact with the Earth as a whole. The Institute is the largest independent oceanographic institution in the world.

In fiscal year 2003, NOAA has awarded more than 475 grants totaling $204.2 million to members of the academic, scientific and business communities to help the agency fulfill its mission, which is to study the Earth’s natural systems in order to predict environmental change, manage ocean resources, protect life and property and provide decision makers with reliable scientific information. NOAA goals and programs reflect a commitment to these basic responsibilities of science and service to the nation for 33 years.

The Commerce Department’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and providing environmental stewardship of our nation’s coastal and marine resources. To learn more about NOAA, please visit http://www.noaa.gov.

On the Web:

NOAA: http://www.noaa.gov

NOAA Administrator, Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Ph.D.: http://www.noaa.gov/lautenbacher.html

ARGO Float Project: http://www-argo.ucsd.edu/