ONE SMALL SPLASH FOR A DRIFTER,
ONE LARGE STEP FOR A GLOBAL EARTH OBSERVATION SYSTEM

Oct. 6, 2005 — As Global Drifter 1250 hit the cold waters off of Halifax, Nova Scotia, it signaled the completion of the first component of the Global Ocean Observing System and the first segment of the Global Earth Observation System of Systems, or GEOSS. (Click NOAA image for larger view of a previous global drifter buoy being deployed. Click here for high resolution version. Please credit “NOAA.”)

"With this achievement we have taken another step toward creating a 'system of systems' that will give us a new perspective on our planet's oceans and atmosphere," said retired Navy Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Ph.D., undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator. "This system of systems will provide timely, quality, long-term global information that our government leaders and our citizens need for sound decision-making."

Global Drifter 1250, about the size of a piece of carry-on luggage, completes a world-wide network of 1,250 drifting buoys, and joins thousands of other drifting and moored data buoys, profiling floats, tide gauge stations, ship-based systems, and satellites to monitor and document the state of the ocean. (Click NOAA image for larger view of a global drifter buoy after being deployed. Click here for high resolution version. Please credit “NOAA.”)

"While its primary task is to collect climate data, Global Drifter 1250 and its 1,249 colleagues will also support global weather prediction, global and coastal ocean prediction, marine hazard warning, marine environment and ecosystem monitoring, and navigation," said Richard Spinrad, NOAA assistant administrator for oceanic and atmospheric research.

NOAA supplied 1,000 of the 1,250 drifting buoys in the array and 54 percent of the global ocean observing system. The drifter project in NOAA is managed jointly by the NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory in Miami, Fla. and the NOAA Joint Institute for Marine Observations at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, Calif.

"One drifting buoy is needed about every 500 kilometers, over the entire global ocean, to calibrate the NOAA, NASA and other satellites that measure sea surface temperatures," said Michael Johnson, director of the NOAA Office of Climate Observation. Johnson and Peter Niiler, JIMO director, launched Global Drifter 1250 in a Sept. 18 ceremony aboard the Tall Ship Silva. (Click NOAA image for larger view of Mike Johnson, director of the NOAA Office of Climate Observation, and Peter Niiler, director of the Joint Institute for Marine Observations at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, deploying Global Drifter 1250 in waters off Halifax on September 18, 2005. Click here for high resolution version. Please credit “NOAA.”)

“Drifting buoys measure ocean temperature, currents and atmospheric pressure over the ocean,” said Johnson. "They also provide the primary calibration system, or 'ground truth,' for satellite measurement of sea surface temperature, which is essential for climate, weather and storm prediction," he said. "The scientific design for the global surface drifting buoy array calls for 1,250 buoys to be maintained worldwide based on the requirement for buoy measurement of sea surface temperature in combination with satellite measurement."

The ceremony was held in conjunction with the second session of the Joint World Meteorological Organization-Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission Technical Commission for Oceanography and Marine Meteorology (JCOMM-II)

"This is a milestone event in international cooperation, coordination, and information exchange among the meteorological and oceanographic communities," said Secretary-General of the WMO Michel Jarraud.

The theme of international cooperation was echoed by Patricio Bernal, executive secretary for the IOC.

"This achievement today is solid proof that international cooperation among nations, institutions and individuals can deliver significant results for the benefit of humankind," Bernal said.

The countries participating in the Data Buoy Cooperation Panel of JCOMM have worked for a decade to collectively build the resources necessary to maintain 1,250 buoys in sustained service, Johnson said.

NOAA, an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, 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 the nation's coastal and marine resources.

Relevant Web Sites
NOAA Adopt a Drifter Tracking Page

NOAA Office of Climate Observation

Media Contact:
Jana Goldman, NOAA Research, (301) 713-2483 ext. 181