This Issue:
Director's Article
Upcoming Events & Program Updates
Global Drifter Program Operations During COVID-19
Hurricane Glider in the Gulf Stream
Call for Spotlight Presentations
News from Around NOAA
New Publications
*This copy includes a name correction. Apologies for the mistake.
Director's Article

From my home office in my basement, I can see out across my backyard. There are an amazing number of animals and birds that live in my little part of the world. A colleague happened to catch a great photo of a fox in her yard. These animals have been there all along, but we are noticing them for the first time because we are home, watching, and recording. This is definitely an unexpected benefit of working from home!
 
In April, we helped GOOS collect information on the impacts of COVID-19 on our observing enterprise. In May, we turned our attention towards helping to re-start bits and pieces of the ocean observing system. We focused on behind-the-scenes planning and engagement in various fora to allow at least some activities to move ahead in light of decreasing restrictions. We are seeing incremental progress. NOAA’s fleet is still dockside, with plans for startup set for July. While the fleet may be back in operation within a few months, there continue to be significant challenges with cruise planning amidst new safety practices and protocols. Much to work through! The GOOS Observations Coordination Group is holding a COVID-19 call later this month during which we will be discussing higher-level actions we can take to address the growing gaps in our observing activities.
 
Hurricane season is upon us. This year we are taking part in multiple pilots to provide additional observational knowledge of importance for hurricane research and forecasting. Look for articles on these efforts in a future issue of our newsletter.
 
Happy World Ocean Day!


-David Legler
Upcoming Events & Program Updates

Welcome Amanda O'Shaughnessy!
Amanda O'Shaughnessy is a 2020 Hollings Scholar and just completed her third year at the University of Maryland, College Park in Civil and Environmental Engineering. At school, she assists with research on stormwater management in the Inorganic Pollutants lab. She also leads a team that is working with a local elementary school to address flooding concerns and engage elementary students in science, engineering, and sustainability. Amanda will spend this summer working with sea level rise community plans. Welcome to GOMO, Amanda!
Welcome Back, Kelley Uhlig!
Kelley Uhlig originally joined GOMO in February 2019 as a Sea Grant Knauss Fellow working to support the Arctic Research Program. In her new role as a program analyst, Kelley continues to support the Arctic Research Program, the Arctic Report Card, and the coordination of OAR Arctic activities and cross-line partnerships. Additionally, Kelley works with a research networking activity linking the international Sustaining Arctic Observing Networks body and the Arctic Observing Summit to ensure Arctic observing networks respond to societal needs.


Deployments for NOAA's Global Drifter Program (GDP) continue to be conducted by partners around the world despite the pandemic. Recent deployments were conducted starting on May 12th in the North Atlantic from the Icelandic Fisheries R/V Bjarni Saemundsson, and in the subtropical North Pacific by the S/V Kwai, in collaboration with the Ocean Voyages Institute, starting on May 6th.

 The Ocean Voyages Institute , based in Sausalito, CA and founded by Mary Crowley, collaborates with the  Scripps Lagrangian Drifter Laboratory  and the GDP within the framework of a multi-disciplinary group of NASA funded researchers (FloatEco) and is looking to expand their partnership with the GDP. Read more about this project and check out AOML's new Global Drifter Program page!
Hurricane Glider in the Gulf Stream
An autonomous underwater glider in the Gulf Stream has gathered information ahead of early-season Tropical Storm Arthur, passing within 75 kilometers of the eye of the storm. This routine operation provided observations of the relatively cool upper ocean waters (less than the 26°C typically needed to sustain tropical systems) along the storm’s projected track, even in the Gulf Stream. Those observations were made available for forecast models in real-time throughout the storm’s evolution. Glider data provides information on water temperature not only at the surface but also at depth, which is crucial to understanding hurricane intensity. The Gulf Stream has been continuously monitored with autonomous underwater gliders by Robert Todd at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (partially supported by GOMO) since 2015. Read more here.
Call for Spotlight Presentations to NOAA Leadership
Are you looking for a way to build excitement and support for your research? Sign up to deliver a Spotlight Presentation at an upcoming Senior Management Meeting! During each weekly OAR Senior Management Meeting, there is an opportunity for scientists and program managers to showcase their research with a 10-15 minute, high level presentation, which can be delivered virtually from the field. The NOAA Research Communications team offers help with a guided practice session. Please contact your program manager and/or our Communications Specialist,  Jessica Mkitarian  to sign up!
News from Around NOAA

  • What's is like to spend 4 months locked in Arctic ice? Read our interview with NOAA scientist Taneil Uttal (pictured left) to find out!


Recent Publications
Zaba, K. D., D. L. Rudnick, B. D. Cornuelle, G. Gopalakrishnan, and M. R. Mazloff, Volume and Heat Budgets in the Coastal California Current System: Means, Annual Cycles, and Interannual Anomalies of 2014–16. Journal of Physical Oceanography, June 2020. https://doi.org/10.1175/JPO-D-19-0271.1
As always, for the GOMO Community, by the GOMO Community. 

Do you have news to share with the GOMO Community, or beyond? 
Contact Jessica Mkitarian: jessica.mkitarian@noaa.gov or (301) 427-2472.