Monday, December 6, 2010

NOAA's Navigation Services Engage Coastal Community at Bays and Bayous Symposium

At last week's Bays and Bayous Symposium in Mobile, Alabama, coastal planners, researchers, and policy makers attended an NOAA National Ocean Service (NOS) session dedicated to sharing ideas on coastal applications for modeling and data gathered by NOS navigation services offices (Office of Coast Survey, National Geodetic Survey, and Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services). These offices are collaborating on a major multi-year project in Mobile Bay. During an intensive 90-day window that began in November, the offices are gathering foundational data on water level/sea level; currents (circulation); conductivity, temperature, and density (salinity); shallow-water bathymetry; continuous global positioning system measurements; and coastal elevations. The Bays and Bayous Symposium was the outreach kickoff where the offices engaged stakeholders in discussions about making models and data streams more accessible and relevant to issues faced by localities. For more information, contact Galen Scott.