HARBOR BRANCH - OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

HARBOR BRANCH TO HOST POSITION FOR DEVELOPMENT OF NATION'S NEW OCEAN OBSERVING SYSTEM

Dr. Andrew Clark, president of Melbourne-based Harris Corporation's Maritime Communication Services, has accepted a temporary position with Ocean.US, a federal interagency program office established to design, deploy and operate a new sustained Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS). During the temporary assignment, Dr. Clark will work from both an office based at Harbor Branch Oceanographic as well as Ocean.US Headquarters in the Washington, D.C. area. This new partnership could significantly expand Harbor Branch's involvement with IOOS.

Ocean.US's Integrated Ocean Observing System will be similar in function to the National Weather Service and will gather information from land-, air-, water- and space-based sensors to meet various national needs. These include detecting and forecasting oceanic components of climate variability; facilitating safe and efficient marine operations; ensuring national security; managing resources for sustainable use; preserving and restoring healthy marine ecosystems; mitigating natural hazards; and ensuring public health. The US Commission on Ocean Policy recently confirmed the need for IOOS in its monumental report released to the President in September, and Congress is currently considering a bill to provide $300 million for the initial phases of system development during 2005 and 2006.

"An Integrated Ocean Observing System will provide data needed for ocean science, management and conservation of ocean resources, and public safety and security," says Dr. Shirley Pomponi, Harbor Branch president and CEO, "Harbor Branch is committed to supporting and participating in this initiative."

Dr. Clark's Ocean.US assignment is funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Ocean Service. NOAA partners with NASA, the National Science Foundation, and the Office of Naval Research to sponsor Ocean.US, which is staffed by key officials from each agency on temporary IPA assignments.

Dr. Clark, a resident of Vero Beach, is the first industry executive invited to serve on Ocean.US. The position was created to capitalize on Dr. Clark's experience and expertise as the head of a major US firm that has developed and operated ocean observing systems around the world. Harris Corporation's OceanNET™ oceanographic observing systems were built at Harbor Branch while Dr. Clark was Director of Harbor Branch's Engineering Division prior to moving to his position at Harris. Ocean.US expects Dr. Clark's extensive network of contacts in industry as well as with scientific agencies and organizations in the US and abroad to be vital in engaging the stakeholders required to successfully establish the IOOS network.

"We're extremely pleased that Andy Clark has accepted the invitation to serve on the Ocean.US program," says Dr. Richard Spinrad, Assistant Administrator of NOAA's Ocean Services and Coastal Zone Management. "Dr. Clark is an internationally recognized leader in the field of operational ocean observing systems, and is well regarded within NOAA as someone who gets things done. We look forward to the leadership and industry insight that he will bring to this important initiative."

During this assignment, Dr. Clark will continue to provide executive oversight to Maritime Communication Services and serve in an advisory capacity to Harris Corporation.

For high-res photos of Dr. Clark, or to arrange an interview, please contact Mark Schrope at 772-216-0390, or schrope@hboi.edu.

HARBOR BRANCH Oceanographic Institution was founded in Ft. Pierce, Fla., in 1971 to support the exploration and conservation of the world's oceans. The institution has held to this mission and grown into one of the world's leading oceanographic institutions with a 500-acre campus, over 200 personnel, and a fleet of sophisticated research ships and submersibles.