The Federal Plan for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research Fiscal Year 2016 OFFICE OF THE FEDERAL COORDINATOR FOR METEOROLOGICAL SERVICES AND SUPPORTING RESEARCH OFCMA Half-Century of Multi-Agency Collaboration FCM-P1-2015 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration THE FEDERAL COMMITTEE FOR METEOROLOGICAL SERVICES AND SUPPORTING RESEARCH (FCMSSR) DR. KATHRYN SULLIVAN MR. BENJAMIN PAGE (Observer) Chair, Department of Commerce Office of Management and Budget DR. TAMARA DICKINSON MR. EDWARD L. BOLTON, JR. Office of Science and Technology Policy Department of Transportation DR. SETH MEYER MR. DAVID L. MILLER Department of Agriculture Federal Emergency Management Agency Department of Homeland Security MR. MANSON K. BROWN Department of Commerce MR. JOHN GRUNSFELD National Aeronautics and Space Administration MR. EARL WYATT Department of Defense DR. ROGER WAKIMOTO National Science Foundation DR. GERALD GEERNAERT Department of Energy MR. PAUL MISENCIK National Transportation Safety Board DR. REGINALD BROTHERS Science and Technology Directorate MR. GLENN TRACY Department of Homeland Security U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission DR. JERAD BALES DR. JENNIFER ORME-ZAVALETA Department of the Interior Environmental Protection Agency MR. KENNETH HODGKINS COL PAUL ROELLE (Acting) Department of State Federal Coordinator for Meteorology MR. MICHAEL BONADONNA, Secretariat Office of the Federal Coordinator for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research THE INTERDEPARTMENTAL COMMITTEE FOR METEOROLOGICAL SERVICES AND SUPPORTING RESEARCH (ICMSSR) COL PAUL ROELLE, Chair (Acting) MR. RICKEY PETTY DR. DAVID R. REIDMILLER Federal Coordinator for Meteorology Department of Energy Department of State MR. MARK BRUSBERG DR. VAUGHN STANDLEY DR. ROHIT MATHUR Department of Agriculture Department of Energy Environmental Protection Agency DR. LOUIS UCCELLINI MR. JOEL WALL MR. ROY WRIGHT National Weather Service Science and Technology Directorate Federal Emergency Management Agency Department of Commerce Department of Homeland Security Department of Homeland Security DR. STEPHEN VOLZ DR. WILLIAM LEITH DR. JACK KAYE NOAA Satellite and Information Service Department of the Interior National Aeronautics and Space Administration Department of Commerce MR. STEVEN CLARKE DR. RAYMOND SAUVAJOT CRAIG MCLEAN National Aeronautics and Space Administration Department of the Interior Oceanic and Atmospheric Research DR. PAUL B. SHEPSON Department of Commerce MR. JOHN VIMONT National Science Foundation Department of the Interior RADM TIMOTHY C. GALLAUDET MR. DONALD E. EICK United States Navy MR. PAUL FONTAINE National Transportation Safety Board Department of Defense Federal Aviation Administration Department of Transportation MR. SCOTT FLANDERS MR. SCOTT LIVEZEY U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission United States Navy MR. MARK KEHRLI Department of Defense Federal Highway Administration MR. MICHAEL CLARK Department of Transportation Office of Management and Budget MR. RALPH STOFFLER United States Air Force DR. JONATHAN M. BERKSON Department of Defense United States Coast Guard Department of Homeland Security MR. MICHAEL BONADONNA, Secretariat Office of the Federal Coordinator for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research The Federal Plan for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research FISCAL YEAR 2016 FEDERAL COORDINATOR FOR METEOROLOGICAL SERVICES AND SUPPORTING RESEARCH Silver Spring Metro Center, Building 2 (SSMC 2) 1325 East West Highway, Suite 7130 Silver Spring, MD 20910 301.628.0112 FCM-P1-2015 Editor: Mr. Anthony Ramirez September 2015 Assistant: Ms. Erin McNamara WASHINGTON, D.C. Assistant: Mr. Kenneth Barnett PREFACE This edition of the Federal Plan for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research marks the beginning of a new era in Federal meteorological coordination and the Office of the Federal Coordinator for Meteorology (OFCM). As stated by Mr. Samuel P. Williamson in the preface to the document The Federal Role in Meteorological Services and Supporting Research – A Half Century of Multi-Agency Collaboration: “…the federal meteorological enterprise is poised to continue delivering ever greater value in meeting the Nation’s changing needs for meteorological and climatological services and products.” “…I look forward to the next half-century of challenges for OFCM. With the nation’s continued support, we will strive to surpass the remarkable record set during our first half-century.” 2015 has been a year of great change for many of the partners of the federal meteorological enterprise. Several organizations, including the OFCM, are undergoing substantial reorganization. As part of this transition, Mr. David McCarren accepted a temporary appointment from the CNMOC to serve as Acting Federal Coordinator for over eight months. During that time, we conducted a broad survey of the organizations participating in the Federal Coordinating Infrastructure to gather input to inform decisions regarding the future direction of OFCM. With strong leadership and support from the Undersecretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere, Dr. Kathryn Sullivan, the Federal Committee for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research (FMCSSR) met for the first time in over ten years. Interdepartmental Committee for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research (IMCSSR) later met to approve substantial changes to the Federal Coordinating Infrastructure. As a result, the ICMSSR deactivated all four Program Councils and assumed responsibility for all executive-level coordination within the Federal Coordinating Infrastructure. This action also reduced the number of subordinate Committees, Working Groups, and Joint Action Groups by 35%. Amid all this change, the 15 agencies of the Federal Coordinating Infrastructure continue to work together toward common goals in a number of important areas. The Committee for Operational Environmental Satellites is working to improve interagency communication and coordination of matters regarding the use of environmental satellites. In 2015 they documented broad Federal agency support and needs for international cooperation to cover environmental satellite data coverage of the Indian Ocean and continued night visible imagery from the NOAA polar orbiting satellites. In data-related work, the Satellite Telemetry Interagency Working Group (STIWG) has been reintegrated in the federal Coordinating infrastructure to heighten agency awareness of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) Data Collection System (DCS) and opportunities for data sharing and collaboration. iv OFCM continues to play a critical role in supporting cooperation through the Committee for Operational Processing Centers and its subordinate working groups. Establishment of a new information security-compliant communications infrastructure has been a top priority. We will continue to plan, organize, and host the Interdepartmental Hurricane Conference to share information and prepare for next year’s hurricane season, including publishing the 2016 National Hurricane Operations Plan. The Working Group for Tropical Cyclone Research is working to complete a mid-course assessment of progress in achieving our strategic research plan for tropical cyclones. We are also eager to see the proof of concept system under development for dual-polarization phased array radar and the possibility to move forward with a full-scale Advanced Technology Demonstrator for Multifunction Phased Array Radar (MPAR). MPAR represents a potential breakthrough in economy across a number of radar applications. Remarkable change and progress has been made in the area of Space Weather planning and interagency coordination. The National Space Weather Program continues to support the annual Space Weather Enterprise Forum in Washington DC and the new National Space Weather Strategy and Action Plans to be published in fiscal year (FY) 2016. This is also an exciting time for discovering, acquiring, and employing new data streams from satellites, unmanned aircraft systems, and networks of observing networks across the country— all of which will be addressed through our interagency coordinating groups in the coming year. This edition of the Federal Plan provides additional information on these topics as well as much more information about activities across the agencies. It provides Congress and the Executive Branch with a review of agency programs and activities in FY 2015, a comprehensive account of proposed programs for FY 2016, and an outlook for future investment. The Federal Plan's narratives, timelines, and schedules are current as of September 2015. I extend my thanks to our agency partners and their staffs for their dedicated efforts to contribute to this important document. Paul A. Roelle, Colonel, PhD, USAF Federal Coordinator for Meteorological Services and Supporting Research (Acting) v Table of Contents PREFACE………………………………………………………………………………………………..iv SECTION 1 AGENCY FUNDING FOR METEOROLOGICAL OPERATIONS AND SUPPORTING RESEARCH .................................................................................................................. 1-1 AGENCY BUDGET SUMMARIES…………………………………………………………...………1-1 DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE………………………………………………………...……1-1 DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE/NATIONAL OCEANIC AND AMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION .......................................................................................................................... 1-2 National Weather Service ............................................................................................................