 Logo and wordmark of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | |
 Flag of NOAA | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | October 3, 1970; 54 years ago (1970-10-03) |
| Preceding agencies | |
| Jurisdiction | Federal government of the United States |
| Headquarters | Silver Spring, Maryland[1][2] 38°59′32″N77°01′50″W / 38.99222°N 77.03056°W /38.99222; -77.03056 |
| Employees |
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| Annual budget | $6.9 billion (est. 2022) |
| Agency executive |
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| Parent agency | US Department of Commerce |
| Child agencies | |
| Website | www |
| Footnotes | |
| [4][5][6][7] | |
| Part ofa series on the |
| United States space program |
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National security space |
TheNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA/ˈnoʊ.ə/NOH-ə) is an American scientific andregulatory agency charged withforecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions,charting the seas, conductingdeep-sea exploration, and managing fishing and protection of marine mammals and endangered species in the USexclusive economic zone. The agency is part of theUnited States Department of Commerce and is headquartered inSilver Spring, Maryland.
NOAA traces its history back to multiple agencies,[8] some of which are among the earliest in the federal government:[9]
The most direct predecessor of NOAA was theEnvironmental Science Services Administration (ESSA), into which several existing scientific agencies such as theUnited States Coast and Geodetic Survey, theWeather Bureau, and theuniformed Corps were absorbed in 1965.[9]
NOAA was established within the Department of Commerce via the Reorganization Plan No. 4,[9] and formed on October 3, 1970, after U.S. PresidentRichard Nixon proposed creating a new agency to serve a national need for "better protection of life and property from natural hazards... for a better understanding of the total environment... [and] for exploration and development leading to the intelligent use of our marine resources".[10]
NOAA is a part of the Department of Commerce rather than theDepartment of Interior, because of a feud between President Nixon and his interior secretary,Wally Hickel, over the Nixon Administration'sVietnam War policy. Nixon did not like Hickel's letter urging Nixon to listen to the Vietnam War demonstrators,[11] and punished Hickel by not putting NOAA in the Interior Department.[12]
In 2007, NOAA celebrated 200 years of service in its role as successor to the U.S.Survey of the Coast.[13]
NOAA was officially formed in 1970.[14] In 2021, NOAA had 11,833 civilian employees.[6] Its research and operations are further supported by 321uniformed service members, who make up theNOAA Commissioned Corps.[15]
Project 2025 has proposed to get rid of theOffice of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, which would "dismantle" NOAA's research division.[16][17]
NOAA has experienced numerous changes under the second presidency of Donald Trump. On February 27, 2025, several hundred NOAA staffers, mainly probationary, were laid off after staffers from theDepartment of Government Efficiency (DOGE) entered the headquarters of NOAA.[18] By early March, 1,300 NOAA staff members (roughly 10% of the total workforce) were laid off.[19]
Since 1993, NOAA's administrative headquarters has been located at the Silver Spring Metro Center office complex in downtownSilver Spring, Maryland.[20][21] The consolidated 1.2 million sq ft (110,000 m2), four-building campus was constructed in 1993 and is home to over 40 NOAA sub-agencies and offices, including theNational Weather Service.
_and_East-West_Highway_(Maryland_State_Route_410)_in_Silver_Spring%2c_Montgomery_County%2c_Maryland.jpg)
NOAA Chief of Staff Laura Grimm has been the Acting Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator since March 31, 2025.Nancy Hann had previously held this role since January 20, 2025, following the resignation ofRick Spinrad.[22]
From February 25, 2019, to January 20, 2021,Neil Jacobs, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Environmental Observation and Prediction, served as actingUnder Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere at the US Department of Commerce and as NOAA's interim administrator.[23] Jacobs succeededTimothy Gallaudet, who succeeded Benjamin Friedman. The three served in series as NOAA's interim administrator throughout thefirst Trump Administration.[24] In October 2017,Barry Lee Myers, CEO ofAccuWeather, was proposed to be the agency's administrator by the Trump Administration.[25] After two years in the nomination process, on November 21, 2019, Myers withdrew his name from consideration due to health concerns.[26]
NOAA was created by an executive order in 1970 and has never been established in law, despite its critical role. In January 2023, The Washington Post reported that CongressmanFrank Lucas, the new chair of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, had released draft legislation to make NOAA an independent agency, rather than it being part of the Commerce Department. Lucas' push was in response to Republican leaders who had signaled plans to slash funding for agencies and programs that continued to receive annual appropriations, but had not been reauthorized by Congress. "It's been made quite clear in the Republican conference that my friends don't want to fund programs that are not properly authorized," said Lucas. "NOAA is very important, so we need to get it authorized."[27]
NOAA works toward its mission through six major line offices: theNational Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS), theNational Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), theNational Ocean Service (NOS), theNational Weather Service (NWS), theOffice of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR) and theOffice of Marine and Aviation Operations (OMAO).[28] NOAA has more than a dozen staff offices, including the Office of the Federal Coordinator for Meteorology, theNOAA Central Library, the Office of Program Planning and Integration (PPI).[28]
TheNational Weather Service (NWS) is tasked with providing "weather, hydrologic and climate forecasts and warnings for the United States, its territories, adjacent waters and ocean areas, for the protection of life and property and the enhancement of the national economy", according to NOAA.[29] This is done through a collection of national and regional centers, 13 river forecast centers (RFCs), and more than 120 local weather forecast offices (WFOs).[30] They are charged with issuing weather and riverforecasts,advisories, watches, and warnings on a daily basis. They issue more than 734,000 weather and 850,000 river forecasts, and more than 45,000 severe weather warnings annually. NOAA data is also relevant to the issues ofclimate change andozone depletion.[31]
The NWS operatesNEXRAD, a nationwide network of Dopplerweather radars which can detectprecipitation and their velocities. Many of their products are broadcast onNOAA Weather Radio, a network of radiotransmitters that broadcasts weather forecasts, severe weather statements, watches and warnings 24 hours a day.[32]
TheNational Ocean Service (NOS) focuses on ensuring that ocean and coastal areas are safe, healthy, and productive. NOS scientists, natural resource managers, and specialists serve America by ensuring safe and efficient marine transportation, promoting innovative solutions to protect coastal communities, and conserving marine and coastal places.[33][34]
The National Ocean Service is composed of eight program offices: the Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services,[35] the Office for Coastal Management,[36] the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science,[37] theOffice of Coast Survey,[38] the Office ofNational Geodetic Survey,[39] the Office ofNational Marine Sanctuaries,[40] the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management,[41] and theOffice of Response and Restoration.[42]
There are two NOS programs, theMussel Watch Contaminant Monitoring Program and the NOAA Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS). There are two staff offices, the International Program Office and the Management and Budget Office.
TheNational Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) was created by NOAA to operate and manage the US environmental satellite programs, and manage NWS data and those of other government agencies and departments.[43] NESDIS'sNational Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) archives data collected by the NOAA,United States Navy,United States Air Force, theFederal Aviation Administration, and meteorological services around the world. It comprises the Center for Weather and Climate, previously NOAA'sNational Climatic Data Center, the National Coastal Data Development Center (NCDDC), theNational Oceanographic Data Center (NODC), and theNational Geophysical Data Center (NGDC)).
In 1960,TIROS-1, NASA's first owned and operated geostationary satellite, was launched. Since 1966, NESDIS has managed polar orbiting satellites (POES). Since 1974, it has operatedgeosynchronous satellites (GOES). In 1979, NOAA's firstpolar-orbiting environmental satellite was launched. Current operational satellites includeNOAA-15,NOAA-18,NOAA-19,GOES 13,GOES 14,GOES 15,Jason-2 andDSCOVR. In 1983, NOAA assumed operational responsibility for theLandsat satellite system.[44]
Since May 1998, NESDIS has operated theDefense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) satellites on behalf of theAir Force Weather Agency.[45]
New generations of satellites are developed to succeed the current polar orbiting and geosynchronous satellites, theJoint Polar Satellite System, andGOES-R, which launched in November 2016.[46][47]
NESDIS runs the Office of Projects, Planning, and Analysis (OPPA) formerly the Office of Systems Development,[48] the Office of Satellite Ground Systems (formerly the Office of Satellite Operations)[49] the Office of Satellite and Project Operations,[50] the Center for Satellite Applications and Research (STAR)],[51] the Joint Polar Satellite System Program Office[52] theGOES-R Program Office, the International & Interagency Affairs Office, theOffice of Space Commerce[53] and the Office of System Architecture and Advanced Planning.
TheNational Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), also known as NOAA Fisheries, was initiated in 1871 with a primary goal of the research, protection, management, and restoration of commercial and recreationalfisheries and their habitat, and protected species. The NMFS operates twelve headquarters offices, five regional offices, six fisheries science centers, and more than 20 laboratories throughout the United States and U.S. territories, which are the sites of research and management of marine resources. The NMFS operates theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Office of Law Enforcement inSilver Spring, Maryland, which is the primary site of marine resource law enforcement.
NOAA's research, conducted through the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR), is the driving force behind NOAA environmental products and services that protect life and property and promote economic growth. Research, conducted in OAR laboratories and by extramural programs, focuses on enhancing our understanding of environmental phenomena such as tornadoes, hurricanes, climate variability, solar flares, changes in the ozone,air pollution transport and dispersion,[54][55]El Niño/La Niña events, fisheries productivity, ocean currents, deep sea thermal vents, and coastal ecosystem health. NOAA research also develops innovative technologies and observing systems.
The NOAA Research network consists of seven internal research laboratories, extramural research at 30Sea Grant university and research programs, six undersea research centers, a research grants program through the Climate Program Office, and 13 cooperative institutes with academia. Through NOAA and its academic partners, thousands of scientists, engineers, technicians, and graduate students participate in furthering our knowledge of natural phenomena that affect the lives of us all.[56][57]
TheAir Resources Laboratory (ARL) is one of the laboratories in the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research. It studies processes and develops models relating to climate and air quality, including the transport, dispersion, transformation and removal ofpollutants from the ambient atmosphere. The emphasis of the ARL's work is on data interpretation, technology development and transfer. The specific goal of ARL research is to improve and eventually to institutionalize prediction of trends, dispersion ofair pollutant plumes,air quality, atmospheric deposition, and related variables.[58][self-published source][59]
TheAtlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), is part of NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, located inMiami,Florida. AOML's research spans hurricanes, coastal ecosystems, oceans, and human health, climate studies, global carbon systems, and ocean observations. AOML's organizational structure consists of an Office of the Director and three scientific research divisions, Physical Oceanography, Ocean Chemistry and Ecosystems, and Hurricane Research. The Office of the Director oversees the Laboratory's scientific programs, as well as its financial, administrative, computer, outreach/education, and facility management services.[60]
Research programs are augmented by the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies (CIMAS), a joint enterprise with the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. CIMAS enables AOML and university scientists to collaborate on research areas of mutual interest and facilitates the participation of students and visiting scientists. AOML is a member of a unique community of marine research and educational institutions located on Virginia Key in Miami, Florida.[60]
In 1977, thePacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) deployed the first successful moored equatorial current meter – the beginning of theTropical Atmosphere Ocean, TAO, array. In 1984, theTropical Ocean-Global Atmosphere program (TOGA) program began.
TheArctic Report Card is the annual update charts of the ongoing impact of changing conditions on the environment and community by NOAA. In 2019, it was compiled by 81 scientists from 12 nations.[61]
TheOffice of Marine and Aviation Operations is responsible for the fleet of NOAA ships, aircraft, and diving operations. It is the largest research fleet in the Federal government. Its personnel is made up of federal civil service employees andNOAA Corps Commissioned Officers.[62] The office is led by a NOAA Corps two-starRear Admiral, who also commands the NOAA Corps.[63]
TheNational Geodetic Survey (NGS) is a major surveying organization in the United States.[64]
TheNational Integrated Drought Information System is a program within NOAA with an interagency mandate to coordinate and integrate drought research, building upon existing federal, tribal, state, and local partnerships in support of creating a national drought early warning information system.[65]
TheNOAA Commissioned Officer Corps is auniformed service of men and women who operateNOAA ships and aircraft, and serve in scientific and administrative posts.[66]
Since 2001, the organization has hosted the senior staff and recent chair,Susan Solomon, of theIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's working group on climate science.[67]
Hurricane Dorian was an extremely powerful and destructive tropical cyclone that devastated the northwestern Bahamas and caused significant damage to the Southeastern United States and Atlantic Canada in September 2019. By September 1, NOAA had issued a statement saying that the "current forecast path of Dorian does not include Alabama". However, on that date, President Donald Trump tweeted that Alabama, among other states, "will most likely be hit (much) harder than anticipated".[68][69][70]
Shortly thereafter, theBirmingham, Alabama office of the National Weather Service issued a tweet that appeared to contradict Trump, saying that Alabama "will NOT see any impacts from Dorian". On September 6, NOAA published a statement from an unidentified spokesperson supporting Trump's September 1 claim. The statement also labelled the Birmingham, Alabama branch of the National Weather Service's contradiction of Trump as incorrect.[68][69][70]The New York Times reported that the NOAA September 6 statement was prompted by a threat from U.S. Commerce SecretaryWilbur Ross to fire high-level NOAA staff unless they supported Trump's claim. The Department of Commerce described this report as "false".[71][72]
Meanwhile,The Washington Post reported that NOAA had twice ordered National Weather Service employees not to provide "any opinion" on Hurricane Dorian and to "only stick with official National Hurricane Center forecasts". The first order came after Trump's September 1 comments and the Birmingham, Alabama National Weather Service's contradiction of Trump. The second order came on September 4 after Trump displayed an August 29 map that was altered with a black marker to show that Hurricane Dorian may hit Alabama.[73]
On September 9, speaking at an Alabama National Weather Service (NWS) meeting the Director of the National Weather Service gave a speech supporting Birmingham NWS and said the team "stopped public panic" and "ensured public safety". He said that when Birmingham issued their instructions they were not aware that the calls they were receiving were a result of Trump's tweet. The acting chief scientist and assistant administrator for the ocean and atmospheric research said he is "pursuing the potential violations" of the agency's scientific integrity policy.[74]
The NOAA flag is a modification of the flag of one of its predecessor organizations, theUnited States Coast and Geodetic Survey. The Coast and Geodetic Survey's flag, authorized in 1899 and in use until 1970, was blue, with a white circle centered in it and a red triangle centered within the circle. It symbolized the use oftriangulation insurveying, and was flown by ships of the Survey.[75]
When NOAA was established in 1970 and the Coast and Geodetic Survey's assets became a part of NOAA, NOAA based its own flag on that of the Coast and Geodetic Survey. The NOAA flag is, in essence, the Coast and Geodetic Survey flag, with the NOAA logo—a circle divided by the silhouette of a seabird into an upper dark blue and a lower light blue section, but with the "NOAA" legend omitted—centered within the red triangle. NOAA ships incommission display the NOAA flag; those with only onemast fly it immediately beneath the ship'scommissioning pennant or the personal flag of a civilian official orflag officer if one is aboard the ship, while multimasted vessels fly it at the masthead of the forwardmost mast.[76] NOAA ships fly the sameensign asUnited States Navy ships but fly the NOAA flag as a distinguishing mark to differentiate themselves from Navy ships.
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