National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps
Emblem of the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps
Founded	22 May 1917 (1917-05-22)[1] (108 years, 5 months)
Country	United States
Type	Uniformed service
Size	330 officers[2] 15 ships[3] 10 aircraft[4]
Part of	NOAA
Garrison/HQ	Silver Spring, Maryland, U.S.
Nickname	"NOAA Corps"
Mottos	"Science, service, stewardship."[5]
Colors	[6]
March	"Forward with NOAA" (1988–2017)[7] "Into the Oceans and the Air" (2017–present) Playⓘ
Engagements	World War I[8] World War II[8] Cold War War on terror
Website	NOAA Corps
Commanders
Deputy Under Secretary for Operations	VADMNancy Hann
Director, NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps[11]	RADMChad M. Cary[9]
Deputy Director, NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps[12]	RDML Amanda Goeller[10]
Director, Office of Coast Survey	RDML Benjamin K. Evans[13]
Notable commanders	VADMH. Arnold Karo VADMMichael S. Devany VADMNancy A. Hann
Insignia
Flag
Aircraft flown
Reconnaissance	WP-3D,G-IV,350CER & 360CER,DHC-6-300

TheNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (informally theNOAA Corps) is one of eight federaluniformed services of the United States, and operates under theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a scientific agency overseen by theDepartment of Commerce. The NOAA Corps is made up of scientifically and technically trainedofficers. The NOAA Corps and theUnited States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps are the only U.S. uniformed services that consist only ofcommissioned officers, with noenlisted orwarrant officer ranks. The NOAA Corps' primary mission is to monitor oceanic conditions, support major waterways, and monitoratmospheric conditions.

The NOAA Corps traces its origins to the establishment of theUnited States Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps on May 22, 1917, which the service recognizes as its official date of establishment.^[14][15] The Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps became theEnvironmental Science Services Administration Corps in 1965, which in turn became the NOAA Corps in 1970.^[15][16]

The NOAA Corps is the smallest^[17] of theeight uniformed services of theUnited States government. It has over 300 commissioned officers, but no enlisted or warrant officer personnel. The NOAA Corps today employs professionals trained inengineering,earth sciences,oceanography,meteorology,fisheries science, and other related disciplines. NOAA Corps officers operateNOAA ships, flyNOAA aircraft, manageresearch projects, conductdiving operations, and serve in staff positions throughoutNOAA, as well as in positions in theUnited States Merchant Marine, theUnited States Department of Defense, theUnited States Coast Guard, theNational Aeronautics and Space Administration, and theUnited States Department of State. Like its predecessors, the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps and the ESSA Corps, the NOAA Corps provides a source of technically skilled officers which can be incorporated into theUnited States Armed Forces in times of war, and in peacetime supports defense requirements in addition to its non-military scientific projects.^[18][17] Should it be called into active duty, it would be a department of one of the six branches of the U.S. Armed Forces.^[19]

The NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps traces its roots to theUnited States Coast and Geodetic Survey, the oldest scientific agency of the federal government. The Coast and Geodetic Survey was founded as the United States Survey of the Coast underPresidentThomas Jefferson in 1807 and renamed the United States Coast Survey in 1836. Until theAmerican Civil War (1861–1865), the Coast Survey was staffed bycivilianpersonnel working withUnited States Army andUnited States Navyofficers. During the American Civil War,Army officers were withdrawn from Coast Survey duty, never to return, while all but twoNavy officers also were withdrawn from Coast Survey service for the duration of the war. Since most men of the Survey had Union sympathies, most stayed on with the Survey rather than resigning to serve theConfederate States of America; their work shifted in emphasis to support of theUnited States Navy andUnion Army, and these Coast Surveyors are the professional ancestors of today's NOAA Corps. Those Coast Surveyors supporting theUnion Army were given assimilated military rank while attached to a specific command, but those supporting the U.S. Navy operated as civilians and ran the risk of beingexecuted asspies if captured by the Confederates while working in support of Union forces. After the war, U.S. Navy officers returned to duty with the Coast Survey, which was given authority overgeodetic activities in the interior of the United States in 1871 and was subsequently renamed the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey in 1878.^[18][20]

With the outbreak of theSpanish–American War in April 1898, the U.S. Navy again withdrew all of itsofficers from Coast and Geodetic Survey assignments. They returned after the war ended in August 1898, but the system ofU.S. Navyofficers and men crewing the Survey'sships that had prevailed for most of the 19th century came to an end when the appropriation law approved on June 6, 1900, provided for "all necessary employees to man and equip the vessels," instead of U.S. Navy personnel. The law took effect on July 1, 1900; at that point, all U.S. Navy personnel assigned to the Survey's ships remained aboard until the first call at each ship'shome port, where they transferred off, with the Survey reimbursing the Navy for their pay accrued after July 1, 1900.^[21] From July 1900, the Coast and Geodetic Survey continued as an entirely civilian-run organization until after the United States enteredWorld War I in April 1917.^[18]

To avoid the dangers that Coast Survey personnel had faced during the Civil War of being executed as spies if captured by the enemy, theUnited States Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps was established on 22 May 1917. This gave themcommissioned officer status, protecting them if they were captured while serving assurveyors on the battlefield. The creation of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps also ensured that in wartime a set of officers with technical skills in surveying could be assimilated rapidly into theUnited States Armed Forces so that their skills could be employed in military and naval work essential to the war effort. Before World War I ended in November 1918, over half of all Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps officers had served in the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, orUnited States Marine Corps, performing duty asartillery orienteering officers, asminelaying officers in theNorth Sea (where they were involved in the laying of theNorth Sea Mine Barrage), asnavigators aboardtroop transports, asintelligence officers, and as officers on the staff ofAmerican Expeditionary Forcecommanding officerGeneralJohn "Black Jack" Pershing.^[18]

The Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps returned to peacetime scientific pursuits after the war.^[18] Its first flag officer wasRear AdmiralRaymond S. Patton, who was promoted fromcaptain torear admiral in 1936.

When the United States enteredWorld War II in December 1941, the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps again suspended its peacetime activities to support the war effort, often seeing front-line service. Over half of all Coast and Geodetic Survey officers were transferred to the U.S. Army, theUnited States Army Air Forces, the U.S. Navy, or the U.S. Marine Corps, and deployed inNorth Africa,Europe, thePacific, and the defense ofNorth America as artillery surveyors,hydrographers,amphibious engineers, beachmasters (i.e., directors of disembarkation), instructors at service schools, and in a wide variety of technical positions. They also served as reconnaissance surveyors for a worldwide aeronautical charting effort, and a Coast and Geodetic Survey officer was the firstcommanding officer of the Army Air Forces Aeronautical Chart Plant atSt. Louis, Missouri. Three officers who remained in Coast and Geodetic Survey service were killed during the war, as were eleven other Survey personnel.^[18]

After the war ended in August 1945, the Coast and Geodetic Survey again returned to peacetime scientific duties, although a significant amount of its work in the succeeding years was related to support of military and naval requirements during theCold War.^[18]

When the Coast and Geodetic Survey was transferred to the newly establishedEnvironmental Science Services Administration on July 13, 1965,^[22] control of the corps was transferred from the Coast and Geodetic Survey to ESSA itself, and accordingly, the corps was redesignated theEnvironmental Science Services Administration Corps, known informally as theESSA Corps. The ESSA Corps retained the responsibility of providingcommissioned officers to operate Coast and Geodetic Surveyships and of providing a set ofofficers with technical skills in surveying for incorporation into theU.S. armed forces during wartime.

Following the establishment of the ESSA,Rear Admiral H. Arnold Karo waspromoted tovice admiral to help lead the agency. He served as the first Deputy Administrator of ESSA and was the firstvice admiral, and at the time the highest-rankingofficer, in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps and ESSA Corps.Rear AdmiralJames C. Tison Jr. was the first director of the ESSA Corps.

The ESSA was replaced by the newNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on October 3, 1970.^[23] As a result, the ESSA Corps was redesignated theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, known informally as theNOAA Corps.Rear AdmiralHarley D. Nygren was appointed as the first director of the new NOAA Corps.

In 1972, the NOAA Corps became the firstuniformed service of the United States to recruit women on the same basis as men,^[24] and in that year it commissionedEnsignPamela Chelgren, making her the first female commissioned officer.^[25][26][27] In 1977, Chelgren became operations officer aboard the NOAAresearch shipNOAAS Peirce, making her third-in-command and giving her the highest shipboard posting ever achieved by a woman in the Uniformed Services of the United States up to that time.^[27] On 1 June 2012, the NOAAresearch vesselRVGloria Michelle, a boat crewed by two NOAA Corps personnel, became the first vessel in the history ofNOAA or its ancestor organizations to have an all-female crew.^[28][29]

On 2 January 2014,Michael S. Devany was promoted tovice admiral upon assuming duties as Deputy Under Secretary for Operations atNOAA, becoming only the secondvice admiral in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, ESSA Corps, and NOAA Corps, and the first since the promotion ofVice Admiral Karo in 1965.^[30] On 15 July 2024,Nancy A. Hann assumed the position of Deputy Under Secretary for Operations, NOAA, and became the third person and first woman to achieve the rank of vice admiral in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, ESSA Corps, and NOAA Corps.^{[31][32][33][34][35]}

No.	Portrait	Name (lifespan)	Term of office			Notes	Ref.
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps
1		Ernest L. Jones (1876–1929)	1917	1929 †	11–12 years	Superintendent (title changed to "Director" in 1919) of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey from 1915 until he died in 1929. As such, led the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps from its creation in 1917 until 1929.[36] Was acolonel andintelligence officer in theU.S. Army duringWorld War I.[37]
2		Rear Admiral Raymond S. Patton (1882–1937)	1929	1937	7–8 years	Director, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, which included leadership of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, from 1929 until he died in 1937. Served as director in the rank ofcaptain until he was promoted torear admiral in 1936. Was the firstflag officer in Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps history.[36]
3		Rear Admiral Leo O. Colbert (1883–1968)	1938	1950	11–12 years	Director, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, from 1938 to 1950, which included leadership of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps.[36]
4		Rear Admiral Robert F.A. Studds (1896–1962)	1950	1955	4–5 years	Director, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, from 1950 to 1955, which included leadership of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps.[36]
5		Rear Admiral H. Arnold Karo (1903–1986)	1955	1965	9–10 years	Last Director, Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps (1955–1965); served as Director of the Coast and Geodetic Survey. At end of the tour as Director, simultaneously transferred to the new ESSA Corps and received a promotion tovice admiral on 13 July 1965 to serve as Deputy Administrator,Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA), from 1965 to 1967. The firstofficer in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps and ESSA Corps officer to achieve the rank ofvice admiral.[36]
United States Environmental Science Services Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (ESSA Corps)
6		Rear Admiral James C. Tison Jr. (1908–1991)	1965	1968	2–3 years	First Director, ESSA Corps. Served simultaneously as Director, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey (1965–1968).[36]
7		Rear Admiral Don A. Jones (1912–2000)	1968	1970	1–2 years	Last Director, ESSA Corps. Served as Director, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey (1968–1970). Then served in NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps and was the first Director,National Ocean Survey, from 1970 to 1972.[36]
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA Corps)
8		Rear Admiral Harley D. Nygren (1924–2019)	1970	1981	10–11 years	First Director, NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps[38]
9		Rear Admiral Kelly E. Taggart (1932–2014)	1981	1986	4–5 years		[39]
10		Rear Admiral Francis D. Moran (born 1935)	1986	1990	3–4 years		[40]
11		Rear Admiral Sigmund R. Petersen	1990	1995	4–5 years		[41]
12		Rear Admiral William L. Stubblefield (born 1940)	1995	1999	3–4 years		[42]
13		Rear Admiral Evelyn J. Fields (born 1949)	1999	2003	3–4 years	The firstwoman and firstAfrican-American in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, ESSA Corps, and NOAA Corps to serve as director.[43]
14		Rear Admiral Samuel P. De Bow Jr.	2003	2007	3–4 years		[44]
15		Rear Admiral Jonathan W. Bailey	2007	2012	4–5 years		[45]
16		Rear Admiral Michael S. Devany	2012	2014	1–2 years	Promoted tovice admiral on 2 January 2014, only the secondofficer to achieve that rank in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, ESSA Corps, and NOAA Corps, and the first to do so sinceVice Admiral Karo in 1965.[30] After a tour as Director, became Deputy Under Secretary for Operations,NOAA.[46][47]
17		Rear Admiral David A. Score	2014	2017	2–3 years		[48]
18		Rear Admiral Michael J. Silah	6 September 2017	1 April 2021	3 years, 207 days		[49]
19		Rear Admiral Nancy A. Hann (born 1973)	16 November 2021	1 August 2024	2 years, 259 days	After a tour as Director, promoted tovice admiral on 15 July 2024 and became Deputy Under Secretary for Operations, NOAA. First woman and third person to achieve that rank in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, ESSA Corps, and NOAA Corps.[31][32][33][34][35]
20		Rear Admiral Chad M. Cary	1 August 2024	Incumbent	1 year, 112 days		[50]

The NOAA Corps uses the same navalcommissioned officerranks as theUnited States Navy,United States Coast Guard, andUnited States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. While the grade ofadmiral has been established as a rank in the NOAA Corps,^[51] the rank has not beenauthorized for use by theUnited States Congress.^[52] Current NOAA Corps ranks rise fromensign tovice admiral,^[53][52]pay grades O-1 through O-9, respectively, although the rank ofvice admiral has been used only rarely in the history of the NOAA Corps and its predecessors.

Unless already on active duty as a commissioned officer in any of the other U.S.uniformed services and transferring their commission from that service, new NOAA Corps officers are appointed viadirect commission and must complete a 19-week basic officer training class (BOTC)^[54] at the United States Coast Guard Officer Candidate School at theUnited States Coast Guard Academy before entering active duty.

NOAA Corps officers receive the samepay as other members of the U.S. uniformed services. They cannot hold a dual commission with another U.S. uniformed service, but inter-service transfers sometimes are permitted from other services via10 U.S.C. § 716.

Unlike theirUnited States Armed Forces counterparts, NOAA Corps officers do not require their rank appointments and promotions to be confirmed by theUnited States Senate, and only require approval from thepresident.^[55]

Uniformed services pay grade	Special grade		O-10		O-9		O-8		O-7		O-6		O-5		O-4		O-3		O-2			O-1
NOAA v t e
					Vice admiral		Rear admiral		Rear admiral (lower half)		Captain		Commander		Lieutenant commander		Lieutenant		Lieutenant (junior grade)			Ensign
Abbreviation					VADM		RADM		RDML		CAPT		CDR		LCDR		LT		LTJG			ENS
NATO code	OF-10		OF-9		OF-8		OF-7		OF-6		OF-5		OF-4		OF-3		OF-2		OF-1

NOAA Corpsflag officers are authorized the use of rank flags.

NOAA Corps officers can be militarized by thePresident of the United States under the provisions of33 U.S.C. § 3061, which states:

The President may, whenever in the judgment of the President a sufficient national emergency exists, transfer to the service and jurisdiction of a military department such vessels, equipment, stations, and officers of the Administration as the President considers to be in the best interest of the country. An officer of the Administration transferred under this section, shall, while under the jurisdiction of a military department, have proper military status and shall be subject to the laws, regulations, and orders for the government of the Army, Navy, or Air Force, as the case may be, insofar as the same may be applicable to persons whose retention permanently in the military service of the United States is not contemplated by law.^[56]

For formalservice uniforms, the NOAA Corps wears the sameService Dress Blues and Service Dress Whites as theU.S. Navy, but with NOAA Corpsinsignia in place ofU.S. Navyinsignia. For dailywork uniforms, the NOAA Corps wears the sameOperational Dress Uniform (ODU) as theU.S. Coast Guard, but with NOAA Corpsinsignia in place ofU.S. Coast Guardinsignia.

• 
  NOAA Corps Combination Cap Device
• 
  NOAA Corps Device
• 
  An ODUuniformball cap, withlieutenant commander rankinsignia
• 
  NOAA Corpsofficers wearingservice dress blues

Although the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey and ESSA had their own flags, neither the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps nor the ESSA Corps did. The NOAA Corps adopted its flag on 7 March 2002, the last of the then-seven uniformed services of the United States to have its own distinctive flag.^[57]

The flag has anavy blue background.^[57] Centered on the background is a white circle inscribed with "NOAA COMMISSIONED CORPS" and "1917", the latter referring to the year of the founding of the NOAA Corps's original predecessor, the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps. A red triangle symbolizing the discipline oftriangulation used inhydrographic surveying. A similar triangle was used by the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, ESSA flags. Triangles are flown in thecommission pennants by Coast and Geodetic Survey and NOAA vessels,^[57] and for the NOAA Corps, their insignia is also set within the triangle.^[57] The flag is displayed in accordance with the customs and traditions of the uniformed services of the United States.^[58]

In 1988, the NOAA Corps adopted amarch, "Forward with NOAA", as its first official service song.^[59][60][61] In 2017 it adopted asea chanty, "Into the Oceans and the Air", as its new official service song.^[62][63]

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