7.4.1 The long-term context
This chapter focuses on the future and examines
the likely legacy from the World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) for ocean and climate
prediction. WOCE will be recorded as a period of
greater than usual effort, but we should not forget
the larger context within which the Experiment
was conducted. We are working from a rich and
broad history and it is useful to devote just a little
space to recognizing this development.
The laying of undersea cables to connect the
American and European continents during the
middle of the nineteenth century provided one of
the initial motivations for examining the deep
ocean. At about that time, investigation of the
ocean for purely scientific purposes also became
more common. The British Challenger expedition
from 1872 to 1876 and German exploration on
the Gazelle from 1874 to 1876 were two of the
early successful deep sea expeditions, taking systematic measurements of ocean currents, temperature, chemistry and biology, as well as sampling
bottom sediments. Another important factor that
motivated scientific interest and observation was
commerce. Valuable trading routes had been created
on the open seas and travel time was a critical element of commercial success. Knowledge of marine
and ocean conditions was vital. M. F. Maury, superintendent of the Depot of Charts and Instruments
at Washington, DC, in the middle part
of the nineteenth century, realized that scientific
study and systematic observations of the sea
could improve safety and decrease voyage times.
Maury began to collect and collate information on
surface currents and weather conditions leading to
the publication of The Physical Geography of the
Sea (Maury, 1859), which was one of the first
practical applications of ocean science and observations. This international system of voluntary
observation remains in place today, nearly 150
years later, and was an important method for
WOCE.
These scientific endeavours marked the start of
what Neumann and Pierson (1966) termed the
first era of oceanographic research. The threedimensional structure of the ocean was being
observed for the first time. Thermometers were
available to measure temperature with depth, and
Knudsen (1900, 1901) introduced chlorine titration for more accurate determination of salinity
and empirical tables for determining density from
temperature and salinity. The first scientific expeditions into high latitudes took place at this time,
one of the more adventurous being Fridtjof
Nansen’s drift with the Fram through the Arctic
Seas from 1893 to 1896 (Greve, 1994).
The second era was born out of the realization
that the ocean was not stationary, leading to
exploration and study of ocean currents. Expeditions of the early twentieth century made more
accurate physical and chemical measurements and
the station spacing was closer, driven in part by
theoretical revelations on ocean dynamics (Rossby,
1936, 1937). While this era probably marked the
7.4
Ocean and Climate Prediction – the WOCE
Legacy
Neville Smith
585
OCEAN CIRCULATION AND CLIMATE
Copyright © 2001 Academic Press
ISBN 0-12-641351-7
All rights of reproduction in any form reserved
CHAPTER
This chapter focuses on the future and examines
the likely legacy from the World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) for ocean and climate
prediction. WOCE will be recorded as a period of
greater than usual effort, but we should not forget
the larger context within which the Experiment
was conducted. We are working from a rich and
broad history and it is useful to devote just a little
space to recognizing this development.
The laying of undersea cables to connect the
American and European continents during the
middle of the nineteenth century provided one of
the initial motivations for examining the deep
ocean. At about that time, investigation of the
ocean for purely scientific purposes also became
more common. The British Challenger expedition
from 1872 to 1876 and German exploration on
the Gazelle from 1874 to 1876 were two of the
early successful deep sea expeditions, taking systematic measurements of ocean currents, temperature, chemistry and biology, as well as sampling
bottom sediments. Another important factor that
motivated scientific interest and observation was
commerce. Valuable trading routes had been created
on the open seas and travel time was a critical element of commercial success. Knowledge of marine
and ocean conditions was vital. M. F. Maury, superintendent of the Depot of Charts and Instruments
at Washington, DC, in the middle part
of the nineteenth century, realized that scientific
study and systematic observations of the sea
could improve safety and decrease voyage times.
Maury began to collect and collate information on
surface currents and weather conditions leading to
the publication of The Physical Geography of the
Sea (Maury, 1859), which was one of the first
practical applications of ocean science and observations. This international system of voluntary
observation remains in place today, nearly 150
years later, and was an important method for
WOCE.
These scientific endeavours marked the start of
what Neumann and Pierson (1966) termed the
first era of oceanographic research. The threedimensional structure of the ocean was being
observed for the first time. Thermometers were
available to measure temperature with depth, and
Knudsen (1900, 1901) introduced chlorine titration for more accurate determination of salinity
and empirical tables for determining density from
temperature and salinity. The first scientific expeditions into high latitudes took place at this time,
one of the more adventurous being Fridtjof
Nansen’s drift with the Fram through the Arctic
Seas from 1893 to 1896 (Greve, 1994).
The second era was born out of the realization
that the ocean was not stationary, leading to
exploration and study of ocean currents. Expeditions of the early twentieth century made more
accurate physical and chemical measurements and
the station spacing was closer, driven in part by
theoretical revelations on ocean dynamics (Rossby,
1936, 1937). While this era probably marked the
7.4
Ocean and Climate Prediction – the WOCE
Legacy
Neville Smith
585
OCEAN CIRCULATION AND CLIMATE
Copyright © 2001 Academic Press
ISBN 0-12-641351-7
All rights of reproduction in any form reserved
CHAPTER