(Please update the following table which contains information provided in response to a similar question submitted by the Subcommittee to NOAA in 1996 with respect to NOAA's FY 1997 budget request.) Answer: This answer to be provided later. (See Pre-hearing Q&A Part 2) U.S.Global Change Research Program Q25. Please provide a complete listing of all FY 1998 NOAA programs/projects included in the FY 1998 U.S. Global Change Research Program, coordinated by the National Science and Technology Council's Committee on Environment and Natural Resources, including, for each: Q25a. A brief description. Answer: Below is a brief description of the programs/projects included in the FY 1998 U.S. Global Change Research Program in which NOAA is a participant. Aerosols seeks to contribute a better predictive understanding of the role of anthropogenic aerosols in climate forcing through reduced uncertainty in the magnitude and distribution of the radiative forcing attributable to the aerosols. This goal closely parallels the aerosolrelated aims of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programs (IGBP) International Global Atmospheric Chemistry (IGAC) Project and the World Climate Research Program (WCRP). Atmospheric Chemistry Project seeks to understand the chemical and radiative processes associated with trace chemicals in the atmosphere. Both endeavors are goals of both the International Geosphere-Biosphere Program (IGBP) and World Climate Research Program (WCRP), to which NOAA is contributing in major ways. Global measurements, laboratory studies, and theoretical modeling provide the sound science necessary to understand the stratospheric ozone layer and the role of the atmosphere in the physical climate system. Climate Change Data and Detection (CCDD) ensures that the data needed to understand the climate system is available for analysis. The data and resultant products extend the existing long-term climate record and serve as essential input to predictive models. In addition, CCDD provides support for documenting variations in climate on time scales ranging from less than one year to periods of 100 years and longer. Support is also provided for the analysis of observed climate variations and changes to identify causes that are consistent with Earth's long-term climate history. Climate Dynamics and Experimental Prediction (CDEP) is taking the next steps beyond proposal-driven research to establish a program for quantitative predictions and reliable assessments of global climate change and its regional implications on time scales of seasons to a century. In a program of applied research, CDEP is employing predictive models as the central integrator for improving insight into the Earth's climate system behavior. Climate Observations (CO) is central to describing, understanding, and predicting variations in the climate system. It focuses on sustaining the long-term measurements of selected climate variables, on developing ways to better utilize the data from selected existing operational data streams for climate products, and on synthesizing, analyzing and interpreting the data sets. Activities include a diverse set of projects involving ground- and satellite-based observations of the ocean, atmosphere, and land surface. Climate Variability and Prediction (CLIVAR) consists of two elements: Atlantic Climate Change Program (ACCP) designed to determine the sensitivity of the global climate system to long-term variability in Atlantic Ocean circulation patterns and air/sea heat exchange. Recent studies suggest that changes in the strength of the Gulf Stream and heat content of the upper ocean are associated with changes in atmospheric temperature and wind patterns over the last few decades. Over even longer time scales, changes in the deep Atlantic circulation appear tied to abrupt climate change observed in earlier periods of the Earth's history. Global Ocean-Atmosphere-Land System (GOALS) builds upon the successful El Niño research of the recently completed climate research that made possible our ability to forecast El Niño up to a year in advance with useful skill. The forecasts are limited in that they focus on the evolution of the tropical Pacific and its related climate impacts. Forecast skill is highest in the tropics near the source of El Niño and diminishes at higher latitudes (e.g. over North America) where other processes may play a greater role. GOALS is designed to continue research necessary for continuous improvements of El Niño predictions and to extend predictability of climate fluctuations beyond the tropical Pacific to include the effects of the other tropical oceans, higher latitude oceans, and land surface processes on seasonal-to-interannual climate variability, particularly at higher latitudes. Economics and Human Dimensions of Climate Change coordinates the Climate and Global Change Program's broader multidisciplinary effort to conduct end-to-end assessments which require integration of basic research on Earth system processes with that on social processes, vulnerability analysis, and adaptation strategies. Global Energy and Water Cycle Experiment (GEWEX) is the major companion to CLIVAR within the World Climate Research Program. The specific aspects of GEWEX addressed by the NOAA Climate and Global Change Program relate to the water/energy exchange processes involved in the coupling of the atmosphere and the land surface (eg. precipitation, evaporation and runoff). This NOAA effort, the GEWEX Continental-Scale International Project (GCIP), is concentrated within an internationally supported research project centered on the Mississippi River Basin. The project aims to capitalize on the climate data that can be leveraged from the existing infrastructure supporting the weather and hydrological services operated by NOAA and other state and federal agencies. Marine Ecosystems Response (MER) contributes to the U.S. Global Ocean Ecosystem Dynamics (GLOBEC) Program, a research initiative jointly supported by NOAA and the National Science Foundation. Research conducted in the MER element is geared toward the generation of quantitative scenarios for the impact of the climate system on marine ecosystems such as the economically significant fisheries in the northeast U.S. Research plans include a study of the effects of ENSO and decadal-scale regime shifts in the Pacific Ocean on the California Current. Ocean-Atmosphere Carbon Change Study (OACES) - OACES goal is to gain a predictive understanding of the magnitude of the atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) that is ultimately dissolved in the ocean and removed from the atmosphere for a period of time. OACES conducts high quality oceanic and atmospheric measurements that are used to document the quantity of CO2 absorbed in the ocean's interior. These observations are incorporated into ocean-atmosphere models to provide an accurate scientific tracking of the fate of atmospheric CO2. Paleoclimatology - The instrumental and satellite record of climate variability extends back in time about 130 years, and is therefore not long enough to define the full range of natural climate variability. For this reason, NOAA implements a Paleoclimatology program that is tightly focused on using geological and biological records of past climate change to understand the complete patterns, processes and causes of natural interannual to centuryscale climate variability. By tapping climate information contained in corals, tree-rings, icecores, sediments, and other sources, Paleoclimatology is coordinating international activities to extend NOAA's long-term record of global climate change back millennia. Q25b. FY 1996, FY 1997, and FY 1998 funding levels. Answer: Listed below are the funding levels in millions, NOAA has allocated to each of the USGRP programs: United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Q26. Please provide all NOAA funding for each of FY 1996, FY 1997, and FY 1998 used to support the activities of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and/or the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for a Framework Convention on Climate Change. Answer: We estimate that the total NOAA travel expenditures and fraction of salaries associated with IPCC drafting and review meetings and INC activities to be $126k for FY96; $200k for FY97 and $200k for FY 1998. Climate Change Action Plan Q27. Please provide a complete listing of all NOAA programs/projects included as part the Administration's Climate Change Action Plan for FY 1996, FY 1997 and FY 1998 including, for each: Q26a. A brief description; and Q26b. FY 1996, FY 1997, and FY 1998 funding levels. Answer: NOAA has no programs under the Administration's Climate Change Action Plan. NOAA Fleet Q28. List all NOAA vessels including their size, number of passengers (including details on average number of NOAA Corps officers, crew, and researchers), date they were commissioned, date they are expected to be retired, actual days-at sea and cost per dayat-sea for FY 1995, FY 1996 and FY 1997. (Please update the following table which contains information provided in response to a similar question submitted by the Subcommittee to NOAA in 1996 with respect to NOAA's FY 1997 budget request.) |