OpportunityTitle: FY2024 Coastal and Ocean Modeling Testbed Project
CategoryExplanation: The U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS&#174;) is a  national and regional partnership working to provide ocean, coastal and Great Lakes observations, data, tools, and forecasts to improve safety, enhance the economy, and protect our environment. NOAA and IOOS stakeholders view a coastal and ocean modeling test environment as essential to achieve a sustained and operational IOOS. The Coastal and Ocean Modeling Testbed (COMT) was established to advance predictions and forecasts by fostering continued coordination of development and testing work between federal and non-federal operational and research partners. The COMT aims to support projects that facilitate and  accelerate the transition of models and model based technologies from research environments toward operational readiness. The goal of this effort is to grow the federal suite of operational ocean modeling products to better understand coastal, ocean and lake processes and to improve predictions of events and changes that impact coastal lives and livelihoods. Of particular interest  are coastal, ocean and lake phenomena that intersect the mission goals of NOAA, other operational agencies, and the IOOS Regional Associations. The U.S. IOOS Program is seeking to fund projects which advance new or existing solutions that address long standing and emerging coastal modeling and forecast product development  challenges. This announcement specifically funds activities needed to progress through the transitional stages from research toward full operations (such as system integration, testing, validation, and verification). Projects will be expected to participate in and advance the operation  of the U.S. IOOS COMT under a community modeling environment. Funding will be targeted to models, tools or products, with demonstrated operators and end users, that are sufficiently mature for evaluation and transition to long term operations.
AdditionalInformationOnEligibility: Eligible funding applicants for this competition are institutions of higher education, nonprofit and for-profit organizations, and State, local and tribal governments. Federal agencies or institutions and foreign governments may not be the primary recipient of awards under this announcement, but they are encouraged to partner with applicants when appropriate. If an applicant has a partner(s) who would receive funds, the lead grantee will be expected to use subcontracts or other appropriate mechanisms to provide funds to the partner(s). If a partner is a NOAA office or laboratory, the IOOS office will transfer funds internally. Applicants should note that paying for transportation, travel, or other expenses for any Federal employee are unallowable costs.
Description: The overarching purpose of the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS&#174;) is to address regional and national needs for ocean information, to gather reliable data on key coastal, ocean, and Great Lakes variables, and to ensure timely and sustained disseminationand availability of these data. IOOS is a national, regional and private-sector partnership working to enhance the nation&#8217;s ability to collect, disseminate, and use ocean information. U.S. IOOS is designed to address regional and national needs for ocean information, to gather specific data on key coastal, ocean, and Great Lakes variables, and to ensure timely and sustained dissemination and availability of these data to support national defense, marine commerce, navigation safety, weather, climate, and marine forecasting, energy siting and production, economic development, ecosystem-based marine, coastal, and Great Lakes resource management, public safety, and public outreach training and education.The IOOS Coastal and Ocean Modeling Testbed (COMT) is an ongoing, multi-year effort to transition prototype ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes models, modeling tools and techniques, products, and data management advances to operations using a process that includes stakeholder engagement from industry, government, academia, and others invested in the modeling and prediction of the nation&#8217;s ocean and coastal regions. IOOS, along with the other seven program offices within the National Ocean Service (NOS), has recently published a NOS Modeling Strategy (https://aambpublicoceanservice.blob.core.windows.net/oceanserviceprod/tools/coastalpredictions/ NOS-Modeling-Strategy-2023.pdf) that describes a holistic, interdisciplinary, and community built modeling portfolio to deliver the applications and services needed to reduce risks to life and property, enhance the economy, and promote social well-being in concert with our ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes environments. The COMT program aims to bring this vision to fruition through co-development of operational models. Operational mode is defined as the actual application of the technology in its final form and undermission requirements. Within this context, the U.S. IOOS Program is managing a competitive research and development project in which the IOOS Program funds advanced ocean, coastal, and Great Lakes modeling, prediction innovation projects designed to enable evaluation and transition of these models, modeling tools and techniques to operations mode. This funding will support modeling and prediction transitions in regions across the United States.
GrantorContactEmailDescription: E-mail
GrantorContactText: Name: Debra Esty &lt;br/&gt;Title: Management and Program Analyst