Naval Oceanography expanding use and development of unmanned systems

May 5, 2016

For two decades, unmanned systems have played an important role in the Navy’s mission to collect oceanographic information, and Naval Oceanography leaders are expanding their use and development of unmanned aerial, surface, and undersea systems to improve physical battlespace awareness and decision making for naval operations.

The Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command is a worldwide organization that directs and oversees collection, processing and exploitation of accurate, relevant and timely oceanographic, meteorological, hydrographic, and precise time and astrometric information. In addition to the command’s headquarters, four of its subordinate commands – the Naval Oceanographic Office, Fleet Survey Team, Naval Oceanography Mine Warfare Center and Naval Oceanography Anti-Submarine Warfare Center, are also located at Stennis Space Center (SSC).

“We have the right space, facilities, and people to make SSC an unmanned system development, testing and training range complex,” said Dr. William H. Burnett, deputy commander/technical director of the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command.

In addition to the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command, Stennis is home to the Naval Research Laboratory, the NOAA National Data Buoy Center, the University of Southern Mississippi Marine Science program along with various industry tenants. These agencies also have broad expertise in unmanned system employment tactics, techniques and procedures.

All Navy’s oceanography and hydrographic survey teams that deploy to forward-deployed T-AGS survey ships originate out of SSC.

“The information we collect allows Naval and Joint commanders to make better decisions faster than the adversary across a wide range warfare areas,” Burnett said.  “Accurate observations and predictions by Naval Oceanography personnel here at SSC are also important to the safe operation of UUVs which themselves are impacted by the ocean environment.”