Past Advisory Committees

From 2004-2007, scientific and technical advice to the ORION Program Office was provided by an advisory committee structure. The membership of these committees came from academia, industry, government and the international community, and included scientists, engineers and educators with broad, interdisciplinary expertise in ocean-related problems. A brief description of the proposed ORION Advisory Structure shown in the figure below can be downloaded here (PDF, 76 KB). This is meant to be a high-level description of the structure and functioning of the ORION Advisory Structure and is not a substitute for formal Terms of Reference for each committee. Solid lines and arrows indicate reporting lines; dashed lines indicate lines of communication. Scroll down or click on the links to see the committee memberships:

(Interim) Observatory Steering Committee

The Observatory Steering Committee (OSC) was the top-level committee in the ORION advisory structure. The OSC provided overall vision and leadership for the ORION Program and advised the Project Office on all matters related to ORION. The OSC oversaw the operation of the advisory structure, advised the Project Office on policies and procedures for observatory operations, usage and data management, and was responsible for longer term program planning and development, including fostering links with other national and international research programs and observatory systems.

The iOSC was established at the request of JOI’s Board of Governors due to conflict-of-interest concerns while JOI was reviewing proposals and negotiating large contracts for the OOI Network’s Coastal/Global Implementing Organization. In May 2007, the Board’s Executive Committee approved a slate of non-conflicted advisors representing a diversity of institutions and scientific disciplines that retained project history by including members from other OOI advisory committees.

Terms of Reference (PDF, 73 KB)

Interim OSC Membership:

OSC Meetings:

Science and Technical Advisory Committee

The Science and Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) was the main science and technical planning committee of the ORION Advisory Structure. While the OSC was focused on advising the Project Office on policies and procedures and on the longer-term scientific goals and development of the ORION Program, the STAC was focused on shorter-term (year-by-year) science planning and technical development.

ORION STAC Membership:

STAC Meetings:

  • Oct. 17-19, 2006: Portland, OR
  • May 1-3, 2006: Rockville, MD
  • January 30-Feb. 1, 2006: Washington, DC
  • October 19-21, 2005: Washington, DC: Meeting Minutes (PDF: 42KB)

 

Cyberinfrastructure Committee

The ORION CyberInfrastructure Committee was charged with developing a vision and an implementation plan for the cyberinfrastructure component of ORION, for subsequently providing guidance and evaluation during the execution of the ORION cyberinfrastructure implementation plan, and ensuring CI services are provided during the observatory operation.

Terms of Reference (PDF, 54 KB) – pdf

ORION Cyberinfrastructure Committee Membership:

ex officio:

Cyberinfrastructure Committee Meetings:

  • Oct. 31-Nov. 2, 2006: Washington, DC: Meeting Minutes (PDF)
  • May 1-3, 2006: Rockville, Maryland
    Combined meeting with STAC, Engineering, Sensors committees
  • January 30-Feb. 1, 2006: Washington, DC
    Combined meeting with STAC, Engineering, Sensors committees
  • Sept. 23-24, 2005: Washington, DC: Meeting Minutes
  • May 19-20, 2005: Portland, Oregon: Meeting Minutes

Education and Public Awareness

The role of the ORION Education and Public Awareness Committee (EPAC) was to advise the ORION program in matters of education and public awareness. In particular, the EPAC advised the Project Office on how, given available resources, to exploit most effectively the unique capabilities of ocean observatories to enhance science education and public awareness of the oceans.

ORION EPAC Membership:

EPAC Meetings:

  • October 2-3, 2006: Washington, DC
  • December 1-2, 2005: Washington, DC
  • October 3-5, 2005:Washington, DC: Meeting Summary (PDF: 9KB)

Engineering Committee

The ORION Engineering Committee (EC) was responsible for providing advice to the ORION Science and Technical Advisory Committee and the ORION Project Office on the technical specifications and performance of ocean observatory infrastructure.

ORION Engineering Membership:

Engineering Meetings:

  • May 1-3, 2006: Rockville, MD
    Combined meeting with STAC, Cyberinfrastructure, Sensors committees
  • January 30-Feb. 1, 2006: Washington, DC
    Combined meeting with STAC, Cyberinfrastructure, Sensors committees
  • October 19-21, 2005: Washington, DC

Sensors Committee

The ORION Sensors Committee provided advice on sensors and related technologies (e.g., profiling moorings) to the ORION Observatory Steering Committee to help ensure that critical instruments needed to address important science questions will be available for use on observatories.

ORION Sensors Committee Membership:

Sensors Committee Meetings:

  • May 1-3, 2006: Rockville, MD
    Combined meeting with STAC, Engineering, Cyberinfrastructure committees
  • January 30-Feb. 1, 2006: Washington, DC
    Combined meeting with STAC, Engineering, Sensors committees
  • October 19-21, 2005: Washington, DC
  • Dec. 6-7, 2004: Washington, DC