Some of the international cooperative activities of MIRC were already reported in MIRC News Letters. In 2001 fiscal year, we visited Thailand and Indonesia where NODC has not been established, and attended PICES Annual Meeting and other international meeting and symposia. Most of the activities were supported by the research fund "Study on Oceanic Data" defrayed by the Nippon Foundation. We shall summarize MIRC international cooperative activities in the past 5 years, here. Our international activities may be classified into 4 items: (1) to attend to meetings relating IODE/IOC in order to collect information and to support JODC activities, (2) to visit advanced NODC such as in US, Canada, Australia etc. in order to exchange information and research results, (3) to visit developing countries in the field of oceanographic data management, such as NODC has not been established yet in order to explain the necessity to establish active data management organization, by introducing activity of MIRC as an example, and to give a copy of quality-control software developed by MIRC., and (4) to attend international meetings and symposia to report MIRC research results and to collect relating information.

　We attended to the General Assembly of IODE held in Lisbon in 2000, and Ocean Data Symposium in Dublin in 1997 to introduce the activities of MIRC. Also, we attended to WEST-PAC meetings held in Lankawi in 1999 and in Seoul in 2001 , respectively. We also attended to PICES Annual Meetings, especially to its Technical Committee on Data Exchange (TCODE) and to its working group on carbon dioxide in ocean.

　MIRC worked with intimate contact to NODCs in developed countries such as US, Canada and Australia and US NGDC. We also invite the scientists from these countries to exchange information and to discuss research results. Especially, as to the skewed occurrence frequency of temperature and salinity, we are comparing our results to those of NODC (see the figure in the face page).

　NODCs of Russia and China, where World Data Centers B and D are located, may be classified as advanced NODC. MIRC sent its staffs to these NODC in 1999. We provided MIRC quality-control software to them. Also, we visited India Ocean Data Center which is RNODC on Indian Ocean in 2001. As JODC activities is focused mainly on Pacific Ares, and as information on Indian Ocean is relatively limited, the information exchange with IODC is very valuable in the future MIRC activities.

　In Asian area, there are many countries in which no NODC is established. Even if NODC is established, its activity is very limited in some countries. MIRC also tried to contact these countries, to provide MIRC quality-control software to these countries, and to exchange various information. We visited Vietnam Oceanographic Data Center in Nah Trang and Hanoi in 2000. Computer systems and other facility are still limited, but the scientists (especially young scientists) appear to be very active and efficient. We also visit Philippine Hydrographic and Geodetic Survey Department, where oceanographic data management section exists, and oceanic section in Philippine University in 2000. Through the discussions about usage of quality-control software, we were impressed with activities of young scientists.

　In 2001, we visited Thailand and Indonesia, where NODC has not been established yet. As to Bay of Thailand, international cooperative studies are conducted actively, and a data management center is set in the Chulalonkorn University. The director of the center, kindly held a data management workshop, and gathered the scientists handling oceanic data from several institutions. Scientific staffs of WESTPAC Secretariat in Bangkok also attended to this workshop, and we can collect valuable information efficiently. We met again to the director in WESTPAC Meeting in Seoul. He is one of the leading scientists to develop GOOS program in Southeast Asia (SEA-GOOS). The activities in Thailand will be improved in near future .

　There is also no NODC in Indonesia, but a section of oceanic data management exists in National Institute of Science (LIPI). We visited oceanographic sections of LIPI in Jakarta and Bandung and the Bandung Institute of Technology (BIT) in January 2002. There was some difficulty to find a good contact person, but we were very impressed with friendship of Indonesian scientists after we arrived. Introduction of MIRC activities were made both in Jakarta and Bandung, there were lots of questions and discussions, and this visit was one of the most successful ones. The MIRC quality-control software was very appreciated, as they have not yet designed such software before. We were also very pleased to hear that the oceanic section in BIT has a plan to establish oceanic data management organization in Indonesia.

　By visiting the institutions relating oceanic data management in Asian countries, and by collecting information, we were impressed that the situation in this field is rapidly being improved. We need to contact to these institutions and scientists and to exchange data and information continuously.