By Dr. Chris Landsea
I’m the branch chief of TAFB, which stands for Tropical Analysis and Forecast Branch; we’re the biggest part of the National Hurricane Center. We have 16 marine forecasters, and about 50 employees at the National Hurricane Center. We’re one of 9 national centers for environmental prediction, and we’re all part of the National Weather Service, which is in NOAA (National Oceanographic & Atmospheric Administration.
I’m going to give you an overview of some of our marine products and services, which may be relevant for anyone who may be going over the open ocean. Our mission statement is that we provide wind and wave forecasts, as well as wind-based warnings over the Caribbean, the Gulf, the Atlantic, and the East Pacific for the protection of life and property. We take this very seriously, and provide the services not just during hurricane season, but 365 days a year.
For 100’s of years, people knew that the ocean was something that you had to go into for commerce, for fishing, and for defense, and the perils were many, and that is still the case today, so it’s our job to help keep mariners safe by providing the best forecast and warnings possible.
In addition to life-saving capabilities, we also want to promote an efficient economy and safe passage for cruisers, and so, for example, Mariners who are transporting goods from Europe to North America, want to do that in a safe fashion, but also in an economically and efficient manner, using the currents and winds to help find the best route possible. Plus, the Blue Economy, as it’s called, really is a massive part of the US economic system. $373 billion is the nation’s gross domestic product, and ocean sectors range from tourism, recreation, defense, offshore oil and gas, transportation, fisheries, ship building, power generation, construction, etc. Within NOAA, accelerating growth in an information-based Blue Economy is #3 in strategic goals for the last five years.
