The agreement provides a framework to share quality data that will enhance NOAA’s ability to monitor climate change and provide useful products that inform responsible energy exploration activities in the region. The integration of this data to NOAA’s portfolio will provide a greater national capacity to effectively manage and respond to environmental disasters, such as hazardous spills, in an area where limited personnel and facilities exist.

NOAA will conduct quality control on all data provided to the agency under this agreement in compliance with OMB and NOAA guidelines plus implementing the information through peer review. Consistent with NOAA’s commitment to openness and transparency NOAA will make most of the data obtained under this agreement available to the public except as limited by a specific annex of the agreement.

While NOAA’s data is generally available to the public, types of data the companies have
agreed to share with the government address issues including:
• Meteorology
• Coastal and Ocean Currents, Circulation, and Waves
• Sea Ice Studies
• Biological Science
• Hydrographic Services and mapping.

A dramatic reduction in sea ice as a result of climate change raises new environmental, economic, and national security issues that have immediate and long-term impacts for human lives, livelihoods, coastal communities and the environment and demand extensive and collaborative analysis.

“Despite the wealth of scientific research conducted on the Arctic environment to date, much remains unknown, and no single government agency or entity has the resources or capacity to meet the task alone,” said NOAA administrator Jane Lubchenco, under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere. “This innovative partnership will significantly expand NOAA’s access to important data, enhance our understanding of the region and improve the United States’ ability to manage critical environmental issues efficiently and effectively as climate change continues to impact the Arctic.”

The collaboration will leverage existing assets and strengths of the signatories bringing NOAA’s scientific expertise together with the industry partner’s offshore experience and science initiatives. Data and information will be shared with the public through NOAA’s existing products and services to the extent possible, in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and procedures.

“We will hold our industry partners to our high standards, and make sure that as we learn more, we also prepare for and minimize the risks involved in Arctic oil and gas development,” said Lubchenco. “Consistent with our commitment to quality-check data and make public as much of it as possible, we anticipate being able to take advantage of multiple sources of information. In view of the rapid of change in Arctic ecosystems and populations, additional credible courses of data are welcome.”

Products and data from this collaboration will help NOAA achieve many of the goals it has for the Arctic. Earlier this year, NOAA released its Arctic Vision and Strategy, a document crafted to address Presidential directives on the Arctic, including the U.S. Arctic Region Policy and the National Ocean Policy, as well as the needs and requirements articulated by NOAA partners and stakeholders for Arctic services. The Vision and Strategy encompasses all of NOAA’s capabilities, including fisheries management, weather and sea forecasting, climate services, mapping and charting for safe navigation, oil spill readiness and response, observations by satellite, ship, and aircraft, and oceanic, atmospheric, and climate research. NOAA’s mission is to understand and predict changes in the Earth’s environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and to conserve and manage our coastal and marine resources.

Two months ago, Reuters photographer Lucas Jackson was invited to the 2011 Applied Physics Laboratory Ice Station, a temporary camp built out of plywood on Arctic sea ice. Far north of Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, the camp housed a couple dozen members of the British, Canadian, and U.S. navies and employees of the Applied Physics Laboratory. Jackson spent two days at the camp, watching its residents conduct tests on underwater and under-ice communications and sonar technologies. He kept his camera equipment warm and functional with chemical hand warmers whenever possible. Collected here are some chilly images from Jackson’s trip to the far north last March.

Click HERE for the full photo documentary from the Arctic.

Via gimodo

Photo: 2010 Arctic ice minimum compared to average courtesy NOAA

NOAA explained yesterday how it will concentrate scientific, service, and stewardship efforts in the Arctic when it released its first ever Arctic Vision and Strategy. Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator, made the announcement during a keynote address to the Aspen Institute in Washington.

“The Arctic is at once a majestic, harsh, and fragile environment. It’s the region where we are seeing the most rapid and dramatic changes in the climate. And these regional changes have global implications,” said Lubchenco. “NOAA’s Arctic plan builds on our research history in that region to prepare us for a changing Arctic that will affect our economic, environmental, and strategic interests. The time to refocus our efforts is now and strong local, regional and international partnerships are required if we are to succeed.”

NOAA identified the Arctic as one of its priority areas in its 2010-2017 Strategic Plan and 2010 annual guidance memorandum, which serve to focus the agency’s efforts on key objectives.

The NOAA Arctic Vision and Strategy lists six goals:

1. Forecast sea ice
2. Strengthen foundational science to understand and detect Arctic climate and ecosystem changes
3. Improve weather and water forecasts and warnings
4. Enhance international and national partnerships
5. Improve stewardship and management of ocean and coastal resources in the Arctic
6. Advance resilient and healthy Arctic communities and economies

These goals require coordination of all NOAA’s capabilities, including fisheries management, weather and sea forecasting, climate services, mapping and charting, oil spill readiness and response, observations by satellite, ship, and aircraft, and oceanic, atmospheric, and climate research.

“I’m glad to see NOAA’s Arctic Vision and Strategy recognizes the need in Alaska for expanded sea ice forecasting, weather observations, water level information and geodetic control. The Alaska Immediate Action Workgroup has identified the importance of these data in our efforts to protect Alaska communities already experiencing coastal erosion and flooding and in planning for possible future development in coastal areas,” said Larry Hartig, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation.

“NOAA envisions an Arctic where decisions to ensure that precious Arctic ecosystems and communities remain healthy and resilient, now and for future generations,” according to Lubchenco. “To do that, we must better understand and predict the changes that are happening in the Arctic, in some cases faster than previously projected.”

The loss of summer sea ice is one such example of rapid change. Record minimum sea ice was recorded in 2007 and has remained low, suggesting that 2007 was not a single extreme event.

The significant loss of summer sea ice is creating economic opportunities for resource extraction and maritime commerce, but it also creates challenges for environmental protection and national security. Arctic communities have long depended upon the unique characteristics of the region for food, livelihoods, cultural heritage and protection.

Via NOAA

Here is a shot from LTJG Tasha Thomas (HEALY’s Public Affairs Officer) in one of her regular updates to family and friends about life aboard the icebreaker HEALY. This shot was taken during the Bering Sea Ecosystem Expedition – an expedition from April 4–May 11, 2009, where a team of scientists from the Polar Discovery team will be aboard the Healy in the Bering Sea and will focus on learning about sea ice, and how climate change will affect it.

According to the Polar Discovery website:

Going on the ice is pretty special. Even on the icebreaker Healy, only people with a work-related reason are allowed to leave the ship when we stop at an ice station. That means the only people who usually go on the ice are the polar bear watch, the rescue swimmer, the writer and the photographer (us), and up to a dozen or so scientists.

But every now and then, on a particularly nice day, with particularly thick ice, something special happens: Ice liberty.

So what do you do when they let you on the ice? Play kickball. The first balls to emerge were soccer balls, but a relatively small area had been marked safe for ice liberty, and we didn’t want a ball that would go far. Instead: the big green exercise ball from the gym. It still kept blowing out of bounds, where the rescue swimmer or polar bear watch had to retrieve it.

You can learn more about the Bering Sea Ecostem Expeditions and check out more photos from the Bering Sea HERE.

Click here to view the embedded video.

More USCG official videos can be found at the USCGImagery channel on Youtube HERE.

The most technologically advanced drillship in the world is not on lovaton in the gulf of mexico or in a Korean shipyard. Actually it’s not even built yet. Meet the Aurora Borealis, a dynamically positioned, drillship/icebreaker, arctic research vessel designed for the European Union. The official website tells us;

The Research Icebreaker AURORA BOREALIS will be the most advanced Polar Research Vessel in the world with a multi-functional role of drilling in deep ocean basins and supporting climate/environmental research for the next 40 years.

The new technological features will include azimuth propulsion systems, satellite navigation, ice-management support, deep-sea drilling under a closed sea-ice cover and the deployment and operation of Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV) and Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) from one of the two moon-pools.

The unique feature of the vessel is the drilling rig, which will enable sampling of the ocean floor down to 5000 m water depth and with 1000 m penetration into the seafloor at the most inhospitable places on earth. The drilling capability will be deployed in both polar regions and AURORA BOREALIS will be the only vessel worldwide to undertake this type of scientific investigation.

Technical Details:

• Powerful icebreaker with ca. 55 MW (diesel-electric)
• Highest classification for icebreakers
• Twin hull
• Two moon pools 7 x 7 m each
• Dynamic Positioning System
• Deep-sea drilling under a closed sea-ice cover
• Drilling rig: max. 5,000 m water depth and 1,000 m core
• Riserless drilling technology
• Modularized mobile laboratory systems – mission specific laboratories
Length over all ca. 180 m | Beam ca. 40 m | Personnel (crew + scientists) 120 | Expedition duration 60 days.

For more information on the Aurora Borealis visit the official website HERE or download the presentation HERE. For the oceanography geeks a more detailed study can be found HERE.

UPDATE: The BBC has just run an excellent article on this vessel which can be found HERE.

Note: This article was originally posted in Jan 08