contribute significantly to the understanding of tropical processes such as the interaction of ocean and atmosphere through rainfall, evaporation, etc. These satellite programs are all closely correlated with Japan's environmental sciences.
3. Future plan in oceanographic research
3.1 International program in the Pacific Ocean
The CLIVAR program which succeeds the TOGA and WOCE programs of WCRP, will be an international program for ocean climate study. We will join the program and harmonize our ocean climate research program to obtain useful scientific results. The TYKKI Panel of UJNR is an important framework for enhancing information exchange and promoting collaborative research in the Pacific Ocean among institutions in Japan and the USA. Continuation of the activities is desirable.
3.2 International program in the Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean consists of two parts, the ever-ice-covered mid-Arctic Ocean and marginal seas where sea ice is most variable throughout the year. The collaboration with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution will cover this area. We are planning to watch the Transpolar Drift and the Beaufort Gyre with two pairs of ice-ocean environmental buoys in future. There are four marginal seas east to the Chukchi Sea. There are already some ongoing international programs, e.g. Russia-US collaboration in the East Siberian Sea, Russia-Germany-US collaboration in the Laptev Sea, Russia-Norway collaboration in the Kara and Barents Sea. We hope that we can join the programs in future. JAMSTEC was enrolled to IABP (International Arctic Buoy Program) last June, however, this program contributes to WCRP ACSYS (Arctic Climate System Study) as well as other programs, e.g. SHEBA (Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean) program, therefore, JAMSTEC is interested in these programs as well and hope that the observation in these programs will be all fruitful for modeling Arctic process.
