National Oceanography Centre
The National Oceanography Centre (NOC), which went live on April 1, 2010, is a national research organisation, delivering integrated marine science and technology from the coast to the deep ocean, working in partnership with the UK marine research community.
Wholly owned by the Natural Environment Research Council, the NOC was formed by bringing together the NERC-managed activity at Liverpool's Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory and the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, creating the UK's leading institution for sea-level science, coastal and deep-ocean research and technology development. The centre works in close partnership with institutions across the UK marine science community addressing key science challenges including sea-level change, the oceans' role in climate change, predicting and simulating the behaviour of the oceans through computer modelling, development, the future of the Arctic Ocean and long-term monitoring technologies.
A major element of the new approach is seeing the NOC develop a strategic network of Partners and Associates – at universities and research institutes – working collaboratively with the Centre in its support of world-class research, technology development and training the scientists of the future. Together, these organisations form the NOC Association, sharing in the delivery of NERC marine science priorities.
The NOC will focus on providing capability to meet the needs of the whole of the country's marine research community, including Royal Research Ships, deep submersibles, advanced ocean sensors and instruments. It will also be home to the global mean sea-level data archive, the UK's sea-level monitoring system for flood warning and climate change, the national archive of subsea sediment cores (key to the understanding of historic climate change) and the British Oceanographic Data Centre. Making sure that these facilities are responsive to the requirements of the wide range of users will be at the heart of the Centre's approach to delivering national capability.
Delivery Partners
Helping to provide marine science national capability
The NOC is responsible, on behalf of NERC, for managing marine science national capability to support the marine science base long-term. This includes provision of major facilities, programmes of sustained observing, survey, mapping, data management and several other functions. The NOC undertakes national capability delivery, this both directly itself and, in due course, by managing contracts placed by NERC with other organisations to provide some national capability functions. Such organisations will be known as Delivery Partners:
- Plymouth Marine Laboratory
- Scottish Association for Marine Science
- Sea Mammal Research Unit
- British Antarctic Survey
- British Geological Survey
National Oceanography Centre, Southampton
University of Southampton Waterfront Campus
European Way
Southampton
SO14 3ZH
United Kingdom
National Oceanography Centre, Liverpool
Joseph Proudman Building
6 Brownlow Street
Liverpool
L3 5DA
United Kingdom