The participants in the International Workshop on Ocean Climate Variations from Seasons to Decades with Special Emphasis on Pacific Ocean Buoy Network, held in Mutsu city from 29 to 31 May 1996,
note that although understanding of the Pacific climate variabilities, typical of which are the ENSO events, has advanced significantly during the TOGA/WCRP period, a major new challenge is to extend our capability to predict ENSO effects in the tropical Pacific to other basins as well as higher latitudes. To advance our understanding of Pacific climate variability, further modeling, long-term observations and process studies are needed to relate seasonal-to-decade variations of the Asian-Australia monsoon system to variations of the ocean circulation in the western Pacific and the Maritime Continent region;
recognize that a climate observing system called TOGA/TAO is deployed in the equatorial Pacific, which is highly valuable scientifically and very important for society. The present TAO array is maintained by multi-national cooperation. It is necessary to maintain, expand and enhance such a climate observing system contribute to the sustainable development of humankind;
warmly welcome and strongly endorse a project proposed by JAMSTEC/STA tentavely named the Triangle Trans-Ocean Buoy Network(TRITON) in the western Pacific and the eastern Indian Ocean where the interaction of the ocean with the monsoon systems is of great practical importance;
recognize that the enhanced capabilities of the new buoy system will be especially useful for sustained real time observations in the western Pacific and the eastern Indian Ocean, and for processes studies where monsoon-related variabilities of salinity, rain and ocean currents are large;
recommend that JAMSTEC/STA should implement the TRITON project in close collaboration with relevant international organizations and programs including CLIVAR, GOOS, GCOS and SOPAC;
recommend that international cooperation in various should be enhanced to provide for more cost-effective deployment and maintenance;
