The mission of our oceanography department is to provide a sound understanding of the science of physical oceanography, and to develop the technical expertise to provide and use oceanographic and acoustic data and models in support of sea operations and undersea warfare. Several curricula have been developed to meet these needs: basic oceanography, operational oceanography, undersea warfare, and a unique joint degree in meteorology and physical oceanography.

The department has developed a broad research program focused on basic and operational physical oceanography to meet the anticipated future needs of the Navy. Important basic research themes are the development of the scientific capabilities to measure, analyze and forecast fields of coastal ocean variables that occur in association with synoptic/mesoscale processes over limited regional and temporal domains. The areas of emphasis include coastal and nearshore dynamics, air-sea interaction phenomena and boundary currents. Regions of interest include the coastal ocean regions and strategic seas and straits of the world.

Priority applied research areas are the application of analyses and forecasts of upper ocean synoptic/mesoscale variability to Naval operations. Areas of interest include the impact of littoral processes, eddies and boundary currents on ocean surveillance systems, the effect of coastal ocean response to storms on acoustic propagation and ambient noise, and the impact of wave, climate and beach characteristics with nearshore processes and their impact on mine/mine countermeasures and amphibious warfare.

These research themes require the development of numerical ocean prediction and synoptic oceanography capabilities. These themes are achieved through employment of modern dynamical and mathematical principles, numerical and statistical methods, computational and graphical facilities, and in-situ and remote sensing observations.

The use of these techniques blends the diverse talents of our faculty to solve problems of common interest. Our students are actively involved in these research programs and participate in research cruises and as coauthors of papers. Many of our results, both theoretical and applied, are incorporated into the curricula we support.

During this presentation an introduction to the instructional curricula and areas of research concentration will be presented. Examples of operational oceanography courses, cruises, and theses will also be shown.