Call for planning letters – ONR Arctic and Global Prediction Program

Published: 1 Feb 2013

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) Arctic and Global Prediction Program invites planning letters for research to be funded beginning in FY14 (starts 1 October 2013).

Planning letter deadline: Friday, 22 March 2013

The Arctic and Global Prediction Program is motivated by the rapid decline in summer ice extent that has occurred in recent years. This has prompted renewed Department of Navy interest in understanding and predicting the arctic physical environment at a variety of time and space scales. The ability to predict the location of the ice edge, the space-time evolution of the ice cover, and the ice thickness will be particularly critical to safe naval operations in the Arctic. To achieve this, models integrating the ocean, waves, ice and atmosphere must be able to represent the physical processes, interactions and feedbacks involved in the seasonal evolution of ice extent, area, thickness and volume. Consequently, the program has three focus areas:

• Developing integrated ocean-ice-wave-atmosphere Earth System models for improved prediction at a variety of time scales;
• Improving understanding of the physical environment and processes in the Arctic Ocean; and
• Investigating new technologies, e.g., sensors, platforms and communications, for sustained operation and observation in the challenging arctic environment.

The Arctic and Global Prediction Program is always interested in receiving planning letters for research that addresses these focus areas. However, for funding beginning in FY14 the program is particularly interested in the following topics:

• Deriving geophysical information and process understanding from declassified, high-resolution visible band imagery (e.g., Kwok and Untersteiner, 2011);
• High-precision GPS for investigating the dynamics of sea ice, ocean and atmosphere; and
• Processes controlling upper ocean heat content and oceanic heat flux to the underside of the ice.

For further information, please go to:

http://tinyurl.com/ONR-GlobalPredictionProgram.

For questions, please contact:

Martin Jeffries
Email: martin.jeffries@navy.mil
Phone: 703-696-7825