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56-468: Bloop was an ultra-low-frequency, high amplitude underwater sound detected by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 1997. By 2012, earlier speculation that the sound originated from a marine animal was replaced by NOAA's description of the sound as being consistent with noises generated via non-tectonic cryoseisms originating from glacial movements such as ice calving , or through seabed gouging by ice . The sound's source

112-399: A license to operate from the sector regulator. This license will set out the conditions by which the companies or organizations operating within the industry must abide. Regulatory regimes vary by country and industry. In the most light-touch forms of regulation, regulatory agencies are typically charged with overseeing a defined industry. Usually they will have two general tasks: In

168-520: A collapsing air bubble in a fluid." NOAA's Christopher Fox, in an interview with CNN in 2001, stated that he believed Bloop to be ice calving in Antarctica . In 2002, Fox was interviewed by David Wolman for an article in New Scientist , where he stated that he did not believe its origin was man-made, such as a submarine or bomb. Fox also stated that while the audio profile of Bloop does resemble that of

224-417: A daily basis. They issue more than 734,000 weather and 850,000 river forecasts, and more than 45,000 severe weather warnings annually. NOAA data is also relevant to the issues of climate change and ozone depletion . The NWS operates NEXRAD , a nationwide network of Doppler weather radars which can detect precipitation and their velocities. Many of their products are broadcast on NOAA Weather Radio ,

280-495: A living creature, the source was a mystery because it would be "far more powerful than the calls made by any animal on Earth." Wolman reported in his article the following: Fox's hunch is that the sound nicknamed Bloop is the most likely (out of the other recorded unidentified sounds) to come from some sort of animal, because its signature is a rapid variation in frequency similar to that of sounds known to be made by marine beasts. There's one crucial difference, however: in 1997 Bloop

336-492: A national drought early warning information system. The NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps is a uniformed service of men and women who operate NOAA ships and aircraft , and serve in scientific and administrative posts. Since 2001, the organization has hosted the senior staff and recent chair, Susan Solomon , of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 's working group on climate science. Hurricane Dorian

392-517: A network of radio transmitters that broadcasts weather forecasts, severe weather statements, watches and warnings 24 hours a day. The National Ocean Service (NOS) focuses on ensuring that ocean and coastal areas are safe, healthy, and productive. NOS scientists, natural resource managers, and specialists serve America by ensuring safe and efficient marine transportation, promoting innovative solutions to protect coastal communities, and conserving marine and coastal places. The National Ocean Service

448-541: A new agency to serve a national need for "better protection of life and property from natural hazards... for a better understanding of the total environment... [and] for exploration and development leading to the intelligent use of our marine resources". NOAA is a part of the Department of Commerce rather than the Department of Interior , because of a feud between President Nixon and his interior secretary, Wally Hickel , over

504-467: A part of the executive branch of the government and have statutory authority to perform their functions with oversight from the legislative branch. Their actions are often open to legal review . However, some regulatory bodies are industry-led initiatives rather than statutory agencies, and are called 'voluntary organisations'. They may be not-for-profit organisations or limited companies. They derive their authority from members' commitments to abide by

560-470: A range of over 5,000 km (3,000 miles). The NOAA Vents Program has attributed the sound to that of a large cryoseism (also known as an ice quake). Numerous ice quakes share similar spectrograms with Bloop, as well as the amplitude necessary to detect them despite ranges exceeding 5,000 km (3,000 miles). This was found during the tracking of iceberg A53a as it disintegrated near South Georgia Island in early 2008. The iceberg(s) involved in generating

616-632: A research grants program through the Climate Program Office, and 13 cooperative institutes with academia. Through NOAA and its academic partners, thousands of scientists, engineers, technicians, and graduate students participate in furthering our knowledge of natural phenomena that affect the lives of us all. The Air Resources Laboratory (ARL) is one of the laboratories in the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research. It studies processes and develops models relating to climate and air quality, including

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672-542: A sound source's motion. Icequakes, caused by the fracturing and movement of large ice masses, can produce powerful low-frequency sounds that propagate over vast distances in water. This mechanism could explain the Bloop's wide detection range and distinct acoustic signature. As oceanographer Yunbo Xie explains, the alteration of waveforms from a detected sound "can also be caused by so-called angular frequency dependent radiation patterns associated with antisymmetric mode motion of

728-785: Is a lack of effective competition . Examples of regulatory agencies that enforce standards include the Food and Drug Administration in the United States and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in the United Kingdom ; and, in the case of economic regulation , the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets and the Telecom Regulatory Authority in India . Regulatory agencies may be

784-535: Is a modification of the flag of one of its predecessor organizations, the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey . The Coast and Geodetic Survey's flag, authorized in 1899 and in use until 1970, was blue, with a white circle centered in it and a red triangle centered within the circle. It symbolized the use of triangulation in surveying , and was flown by ships of the Survey. When NOAA was established in 1970 and

840-455: Is a stand-alone system designed and built by NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) to augment NOAA's use of the U.S. Navy Sound Surveillance System ( SOSUS ), which was equipment originally designed to detect Soviet submarines . According to the NOAA description, the sound "rose" in frequency over about one minute and was of sufficient amplitude to be heard on multiple sensors, at

896-662: Is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with forecasting weather , monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, charting the seas , conducting deep-sea exploration , and managing fishing and protection of marine mammals and endangered species in the US exclusive economic zone . The agency is part of the United States Department of Commerce and is headquartered in Silver Spring, Maryland . NOAA traces its history back to multiple agencies, some of which are among

952-546: Is composed of eight program offices: the Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services, the Office for Coastal Management, the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, the Office of Coast Survey , the Office of National Geodetic Survey , the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries , the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management, and the Office of Response and Restoration . There are two NOS programs,

1008-701: Is home to over 40 NOAA sub-agencies and offices, including the National Weather Service . Richard (Rick) W. Spinrad is the 11th and current Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator. He was nominated by President Biden, and his nomination was confirmed by the US Senate on June 17, 2021, by voice vote. He was sworn in on June 23, 2021. From February 25, 2019, to January 20, 2021, Neil Jacobs , Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Environmental Observation and Prediction, served as acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere at

1064-534: Is led by a NOAA Corps two-star Rear Admiral , who also commands the NOAA Corps. The National Geodetic Survey (NGS) is a major surveying organization in the United States. The National Integrated Drought Information System is a program within NOAA with an interagency mandate to coordinate and integrate drought research, building upon existing federal, tribal, state, and local partnerships in support of creating

1120-538: Is part of NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, located in Miami , Florida . AOML's research spans hurricanes, coastal ecosystems, oceans, and human health, climate studies, global carbon systems, and ocean observations. AOML's organizational structure consists of an Office of the Director and three scientific research divisions, Physical Oceanography, Ocean Chemistry and Ecosystems, and Hurricane Research. The Office of

1176-522: Is the annual update charts of the ongoing impact of changing conditions on the environment and community by NOAA. In 2019, it was compiled by 81 scientists from 12 nations. The Office of Marine and Aviation Operations is responsible for the fleet of NOAA ships, aircraft, and diving operations. It is the largest research fleet in the Federal government. Its personnel is made up of federal civil service employees and NOAA Corps Commissioned Officers . The office

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1232-629: The Birmingham, Alabama office of the National Weather Service issued a tweet that appeared to contradict Trump, saying that Alabama "will NOT see any impacts from Dorian". On September 6, NOAA published a statement from an unidentified spokesperson supporting Trump's September 1 claim. The statement also labelled the Birmingham, Alabama branch of the National Weather Service's contradiction of Trump as incorrect. The New York Times reported that

1288-776: The Landsat satellite system. Since May 1998, NESDIS has operated the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellites on behalf of the Air Force Weather Agency . New generations of satellites are developed to succeed the current polar orbiting and geosynchronous satellites, the Joint Polar Satellite System , and GOES-R , which launched in November 2016. NESDIS runs the Office of Projects, Planning, and Analysis (OPPA) formerly

1344-827: The Mussel Watch Contaminant Monitoring Program and the NOAA Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS). There are two staff offices, the International Program Office and the Management and Budget Office. The National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) was created by NOAA to operate and manage the US environmental satellite programs, and manage NWS data and those of other government agencies and departments. NESDIS's National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) archives data collected by

1400-550: The NOAA Commissioned Corps . Project 2025 has proposed to get rid of the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research , which would "dismantle" NOAA's research division. Since 1993, NOAA's administrative headquarters has been located at the Silver Spring Metro Center office complex in downtown Silver Spring, Maryland . The consolidated 1.2 million SF, four-building campus was constructed in 1993 and

1456-716: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement in Silver Spring, Maryland , which is the primary site of marine resource law enforcement. NOAA's research, conducted through the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR), is the driving force behind NOAA environmental products and services that protect life and property and promote economic growth. Research, conducted in OAR laboratories and by extramural programs, focuses on enhancing our understanding of environmental phenomena such as tornadoes, hurricanes, climate variability, solar flares, changes in

1512-590: The National Weather Service (NWS), the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) and the Office of Marine and Aviation Operations (OMAO). NOAA has more than a dozen staff offices, including the Office of the Federal Coordinator for Meteorology, the NOAA Central Library , the Office of Program Planning and Integration (PPI). The National Weather Service (NWS) is tasked with providing "weather, hydrologic and climate forecasts and warnings for

1568-409: The Birmingham, Alabama National Weather Service's contradiction of Trump. The second order came on September 4 after Trump displayed an August 29 map that was altered with a black marker to show that Hurricane Dorian may hit Alabama. On September 9, speaking at an Alabama National Weather Service (NWS) meeting the Director of the National Weather Service gave a speech supporting Birmingham NWS and said

1624-468: The Coast and Geodetic Survey's assets became a part of NOAA, NOAA based its own flag on that of the Coast and Geodetic Survey. The NOAA flag is, in essence, the Coast and Geodetic Survey flag, with the NOAA logo—a circle divided by the silhouette of a seabird into an upper dark blue and a lower light blue section, but with the "NOAA" legend omitted—centered within the red triangle. NOAA ships in commission display

1680-659: The Director oversees the Laboratory's scientific programs, as well as its financial, administrative, computer, outreach/education, and facility management services. Research programs are augmented by the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies (CIMAS), a joint enterprise with the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. CIMAS enables AOML and university scientists to collaborate on research areas of mutual interest and facilitates

1736-572: The NOAA September 6 statement was prompted by a threat from U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to fire high-level NOAA staff unless they supported Trump's claim. The Department of Commerce described this report as "false". Meanwhile, The Washington Post reported that NOAA had twice ordered National Weather Service employees not to provide "any opinion" on Hurricane Dorian and to "only stick with official National Hurricane Center forecasts". The first order came after Trump's September 1 comments and

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1792-579: The NOAA flag; those with only one mast fly it immediately beneath the ship's commissioning pennant or the personal flag of a civilian official or flag officer if one is aboard the ship, while multimasted vessels fly it at the masthead of the forwardmost mast. NOAA ships fly the same ensign as United States Navy ships but fly the NOAA flag as a distinguishing mark to differentiate themselves from Navy ships. Former: Regulatory agency These are customarily set up to strengthen safety and standards, and/or to protect consumers in markets where there

1848-783: The NOAA, United States Navy , United States Air Force , the Federal Aviation Administration , and meteorological services around the world. It comprises the Center for Weather and Climate, previously NOAA's National Climatic Data Center , the National Coastal Data Development Center (NCDDC), the National Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), and the National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC)). In 1960, TIROS-1 , NASA's first owned and operated geostationary satellite,

1904-681: The Nixon Administration's Vietnam War policy. Nixon did not like Hickel's letter urging Nixon to listen to the Vietnam War demonstrators, and punished Hickel by not putting NOAA in the Interior Department. In 2007, NOAA celebrated 200 years of service in its role as successor to the U.S. Survey of the Coast . NOAA was officially formed in 1970. In 2021, NOAA had 11,833 civilian employees. Its research and operations are further supported by 321 uniformed service members, who make up

1960-739: The Office of Systems Development, the Office of Satellite Ground Systems (formerly the Office of Satellite Operations) the Office of Satellite and Project Operations, the Center for Satellite Applications and Research (STAR)], the Joint Polar Satellite System Program Office the GOES-R Program Office, the International & Interagency Affairs Office, the Office of Space Commerce and the Office of System Architecture and Advanced Planning. The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), also known as NOAA Fisheries,

2016-670: The Republican conference that my friends don't want to fund programs that are not properly authorized," said Lucas. "NOAA is very important, so we need to get it authorized." NOAA works toward its mission through six major line offices: the National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS), the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the National Ocean Service (NOS),

2072-687: The US Department of Commerce and as NOAA's interim administrator. Jacobs succeeded Timothy Gallaudet , who succeeded Benjamin Friedman. The three served in series as NOAA's interim administrator throughout the first Trump Administration . In October 2017, Barry Lee Myers , CEO of AccuWeather , was proposed to be the agency's administrator by the Trump Administration. After two years in the nomination process, on November 21, 2019, Myers withdrew his name from consideration due to health concerns. NOAA

2128-434: The United States, its territories, adjacent waters and ocean areas, for the protection of life and property and the enhancement of the national economy", according to NOAA. This is done through a collection of national and regional centers, 13 river forecast centers (RFCs), and more than 120 local weather forecast offices (WFOs). They are charged with issuing weather and river forecasts , advisories, watches, and warnings on

2184-445: The benefit of the public at large). The existence of independent regulatory agencies is justified by the complexity of certain regulatory and directorial tasks, and the drawbacks of political interference. Some independent regulatory agencies perform investigations or audits , and other may fine the relevant parties and order certain measures. In a number of cases, in order for a company or organization to enter an industry, it must obtain

2240-703: The earliest in the federal government: The most direct predecessor of NOAA was the Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA), into which several existing scientific agencies such as the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey , the Weather Bureau and the uniformed Corps were absorbed in 1965. NOAA was established within the Department of Commerce via the Reorganization Plan No. 4, and formed on October 3, 1970, after U.S. President Richard Nixon proposed creating

2296-787: The event that the regulated company is not in compliance with its license obligations or the law, the regulatory agency may be empowered to: In some instances, it is deemed in the public interest (by the legislative branch of government) for regulatory agencies to be given powers in addition to the above. This more interventionist form of regulation is common in the provision of public utilities , which are subject to economic regulation . In this case, regulatory agencies have powers to: The functions of regulatory agencies in prolong "collaborative governance" provide for generally non-adversarial regulation. Ex post actions taken by regulatory agencies can be more adversarial and involve sanctions, influencing rulemaking , and creating quasi-common law. However,

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2352-486: The failure sequence (breakup) of an ice floe : "A wave equation resulting from shear deformation will be defined in an ice floe with the rubbing effect coupled to the floe through its boundary with the adjacent ice," while "ridging deformation(s) revealed by this event indicate that the failure process is associated with a crushing process that seals air or vacuous gaps between ice floes. The acoustical signals emitted by this failure process are similar to those emitted from

2408-462: The ice cover." Two processes known as rubbing and ridging are responsible for acoustical emissions similar to those from ice calving . Rubbing involves two or more areas of compacted glacial ice floes which are being forced together, inducing shear deformation at its edges and triggering horizontally-polarized shear waves, i. e. SH waves . Ridging occurs when that ice bends or slides at the ridges. According to Xie, both events will produce sound in

2464-432: The ozone, air pollution transport and dispersion , El Niño / La Niña events, fisheries productivity, ocean currents, deep sea thermal vents, and coastal ecosystem health. NOAA research also develops innovative technologies and observing systems. The NOAA Research network consists of seven internal research laboratories, extramural research at 30 Sea Grant university and research programs, six undersea research centers,

2520-749: The participation of students and visiting scientists. AOML is a member of a unique community of marine research and educational institutions located on Virginia Key in Miami, Florida. In 1977, the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) deployed the first successful moored equatorial current meter – the beginning of the Tropical Atmosphere Ocean , TAO, array. In 1984, the Tropical Ocean-Global Atmosphere program (TOGA) program began. The Arctic Report Card

2576-452: The sound were most likely between Bransfield Strait and the Ross Sea ; or possibly at Cape Adare , a well-known source of cryogenic signals. Sounds generated by ice quakes are easily determined through the use of hydrophones since seawater, an excellent sound channel, allows the ambient sounds generated through ice activities to travel great distances. In ice calving , variations result from

2632-510: The standards applied by the regulator, for instance as the UK's Advertising Standards Authority says "The self-regulation system works because it is powered and driven by a sense of corporate social responsibility amongst the advertising industry." Regulatory agencies deal in the areas of administrative law , regulatory law , secondary legislation , and rulemaking (codifying and enforcing rules and regulations, and imposing supervision or oversight for

2688-405: The team "stopped public panic" and "ensured public safety". He said that when Birmingham issued their instructions they were not aware that the calls they were receiving were a result of Trump's tweet. The acting chief scientist and assistant administrator for the ocean and atmospheric research said he is "pursuing the potential violations" of the agency's scientific integrity policy. The NOAA flag

2744-518: The transport, dispersion , transformation and removal of pollutants from the ambient atmosphere. The emphasis of the ARL's work is on data interpretation, technology development and transfer. The specific goal of ARL research is to improve and eventually to institutionalize prediction of trends, dispersion of air pollutant plumes , air quality , atmospheric deposition, and related variables. The Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML),

2800-424: The use of the word 'likely'—opened the door for subsequent speculation as to what such an 'efficient' noise-making entity might be. Over the last decade, consensus has supported the argument that the noise is produced by ice fracturing processes." National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA / ˈ n oʊ . ə / NOH -ə )

2856-614: Was an extremely powerful and destructive tropical cyclone that devastated the northwestern Bahamas and caused significant damage to the Southeastern United States and Atlantic Canada in September 2019. By September 1, NOAA had issued a statement saying that the "current forecast path of Dorian does not include Alabama". However, on that date, President Donald Trump tweeted that Alabama, among other states, "will most likely be hit (much) harder than anticipated". Shortly thereafter,

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2912-731: Was created by an executive order in 1970 and has never been established in law, despite its critical role. In January 2023, The Washington Post reported that Congressman Frank Lucas , the new chair of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, had released draft legislation to make NOAA an independent agency, rather than it being part of the Commerce Department. Lucas' push was in response to Republican leaders who had signaled plans to slash funding for agencies and programs that continued to receive annual appropriations, but had not been reauthorized by Congress. "It's been made quite clear in

2968-440: Was detected by sensors up to 4,800 km (3,000 miles) apart. That means it must be far louder than any whale noise, or any other animal noise for that matter. Is it even remotely possible that some creature bigger than any whale is lurking in the ocean depths? Or, perhaps more likely, something that is much more efficient at making sound? According to author Philip Hayward, Wolman's speculations "amplified Fox's 'hunch' and—through

3024-451: Was initiated in 1871 with a primary goal of the research, protection, management, and restoration of commercial and recreational fisheries and their habitat, and protected species. The NMFS operates twelve headquarters offices, five regional offices, six fisheries science centers, and more than 20 laboratories throughout the United States and U.S. territories, which are the sites of research and management of marine resources. The NMFS operates

3080-401: Was launched. Since 1966, NESDIS has managed polar orbiting satellites (POES). Since 1974, it has operated geosynchronous satellites (GOES). In 1979, NOAA's first polar-orbiting environmental satellite was launched. Current operational satellites include NOAA-15 , NOAA-18 , NOAA-19 , GOES 13 , GOES 14 , GOES 15 , Jason-2 and DSCOVR . In 1983, NOAA assumed operational responsibility for

3136-540: Was roughly triangulated to 50°S 100°W  /  50°S 100°W  / -50; -100 , a remote point in the South Pacific Ocean west of the southern tip of South America. The sound was detected by the Equatorial Pacific Ocean autonomous hydrophone array , a system of hydrophones primarily used to monitor undersea seismicity, ice noise, and marine mammal population and migration. This

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