News and Updates
August 2009
Senator Begich Staff and Senate Committee Staff Attend Satellite Facility Event
On August 18, staff from the office of Senator Mark Begich (D-AK) and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation joined the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator, Dr. Jane Lubchenco, and the Assistant Administrator of NOAA’s National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service, Mary Kicza, in Fairbanks, Alaska, for a construction celebration event. The event was one of the stops on Dr. Lubchenco’s larger visit to the region, and celebrated the start of construction on the new facility for NOAA’s Satellite Command and Data Acquisition Facility. The Facility is being built in partnership with the Army Corps of Engineers with American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds.
 |
Representative Stupak |
Representative Stupak Visit to Thunder Bay
On August 12, Representative Bart Stupak (D MI-1) visited NOAA's National Ocean Service Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and the Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Center in Alpena, Michigan. Representative Stupak received an update on the Sanctuary, a tour of the facility, and was able to see the exhibits in the Center. Representative Stupak introduced the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Underwater Preserve Boundary Modification Act, HR 905, in February. The bill was reviewed during a hearing on July 8, passed out of Committee in the House on July 29, and currently awaits floor action.
 |
Representative Shuler |
Representative Shuler and Senator Burr Staff Attend Event Celebrating New Cooperative Institute
On August 12, Representative Heath Shuler (NC-11) and staff from the office of Senator Richard Burr (R-NC) joined the Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator, Dr. Jane Lubchenco, and the Assistant Administrator of NOAA’s National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service, Mary Kicza, at a reception held at the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville, North Carolina. The reception – Celebrating the NOAA Climate Cooperative Institute in Asheville – was sponsored by the Centers for Environmental and Climatic Interaction and held in celebration of the formation of the Cooperative Institute for Climate and Satellites-North Carolina. This important new research endeavor is located in Asheville as a result of a cooperative agreement between NOAA and a broad national team of science leaders led by the University of Maryland and North Carolina State University. Representative Shuler and Dr. Lubchenco both provided remarks.
Senator Dorgan Staff Visit WFO
On August 10, staff from the office of Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) visited NOAA’s National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office (WFO) in Bismarck, North Dakota. The WFO briefed the Senator’s staff on the recent flooding in the upper mid-west, and related interagency partnerships. In addition to those topics, they provided a tour of the office, a demonstration of the weather event simulator, and showed how the office issues warnings. Senator Dorgan held a hearing in early February based primarily on NWS' flood outlook for the Red River, which came to pass in March and April.
Representative Inglis Staff Participates on Research Cruise
On August 4-10, staff from the office of Representative Bob Inglis (R SC-4) joined the crew of the NOAA ship Nancy Foster on a research cruise from Woods Hole, Massachusetts, which located and identified historic resources associated with the Battle of the Atlantic in World War II. The vessel visited two sites of interest located just southeast of the Hatteras Inlet in North Carolina, before it arrived in port at Charleston, South Carolina. Once in port in Charleston, Representative Inglis’ staff met with representatives of NOAA’s National Ocean Service Coastal Services Center for a briefing on the work of the Center.
 |
NOAA ship Nancy Foster |
Senate Committee Markup of Research Bills
On August 5, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation (Chair, Senator Jay Rockefeller, D-WV) held a markup of S 952, the Harmful Algal Blooms and Hypoxia Research and Control Amendments Act of 2009; The Committee approved the bill, which has been sent to the Senate Floor for a vote where it awaits further action. Two other bills that were scheduled for consideration were pulled and will be marked up at a later date to be determined. They were S 1538, the Black Carbon and Other Aerosols Research Act of 2009; and S 1539, the Greenhouse Gas Observation and Analysis System Act of 2009
 |
Representative Carnahan |
Representative Carnahan Visits WFO
On August 5, Representative Russ Carnahan (D MO-3) visited the NOAA National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office in St. Louis, Missouri. Representative Carnahan is a Member of the House Committee on Science and Technology, which has oversight of the National Weather Service’s programs and activities.
Representative Fallin Visits NWC
On August 4, Representative Mary Fallin (R OK-5) visited NOAA's National Weather Center (NWC) in Norman, Oklahoma. The Center includes staff, programs, and services from both NOAA's National Weather Service and NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research. Representative Fallin toured the phased array radar and met with NWC staff for a briefing on their work.
 |
 |
Mike Foster, Meteorologist-in-Charge, explains the NWS Norman Forecast Office's area of responsibility to Representative Fallin. |
Pam Heinselman, NSSL Research Meteorologist and PECASE award winner, demonstrates phased array radar to Representative Fallin. |