NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps

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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps
Emblem of the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps
Founded22 May 1917 (1917-05-22)[1]
(106 years, 10 months)
Country United States
TypeUniformed service
Size321 officers[2]
15 ships[3]
10 aircraft[4]
Part of NOAA
Garrison/HQSilver Spring, Maryland, U.S.
Nickname(s)"NOAA Corps"
Motto(s)"Science, service, stewardship."[5]
Colors   [6]
March
Engagements

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (informally the NOAA Corps) is one of eight federal

commissioned officers, with no enlisted or warrant officer ranks. The NOAA Corps' primary mission is to monitor oceanic conditions, support major waterways, and monitor atmospheric
conditions.

The NOAA Corps traces its origins to the establishment of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps on May 22, 1917, which the service recognizes as its official date of establishment.[11][12] The Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps became the Environmental Science Services Administration Corps in 1965, which in turn became the NOAA Corps in 1970.[12][13]

Mission

The NOAA Corps is the smallest

U.S. Armed Forces in times of war, and in peacetime supports defense requirements in addition to its non-military scientific projects.[15][14]

History

Early history

The NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps traces its roots to the

Navy officers also were withdrawn from Coast Survey service for the duration of the war. Since most men of the Survey had Union sympathies, most stayed on with the Survey rather than resigning to serve the Confederate States of America; their work shifted in emphasis to support of the United States Navy and Union Army, and these Coast Surveyors are the professional ancestors of today's NOAA Corps. Those Coast Surveyors supporting the Union Army were given assimilated military rank while attached to a specific command, but those supporting the U.S. Navy operated as civilians and ran the risk of being executed as spies if captured by the Confederates while working in support of Union forces. After the war, U.S. Navy officers returned to duty with the Coast Survey, which was given authority over geodetic activities in the interior of the United States in 1871 and was subsequently renamed the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey in 1878.[15][16]

With the outbreak of the Spanish–American War in April 1898, the U.S. Navy again withdrew all of its officers from Coast and Geodetic Survey assignments. They returned after the war ended in August 1898, but the system of U.S. Navy officers and men crewing the Survey's ships that had prevailed for most of the 19th century came to an end when the appropriation law approved on June 6, 1900, provided for "all necessary employees to man and equip the vessels," instead of U.S. Navy personnel. The law took effect on July 1, 1900; at that point, all U.S. Navy personnel assigned to the Survey's ships remained aboard until the first call at each ship's home port, where they transferred off, with the Survey reimbursing the Navy for their pay accrued after July 1, 1900.[17] From July 1900, the Coast and Geodetic Survey continued as an entirely civilian-run organization until after the United States entered World War I in April 1917.[15]

Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps

The seal of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey, in which the NOAA Corps originated as the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps in 1917.

To avoid the dangers that Coast Survey personnel had faced during the Civil War of being executed as spies if captured by the enemy, the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps was established on 22 May 1917, giving Coast and Geodetic Survey officers a

John "Black Jack" Pershing.[15]

The Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps returned to peacetime scientific pursuits after the war.

rear admiral
in 1936.

When the United States entered

St. Louis, Missouri. Three officers who remained in Coast and Geodetic Survey service were killed during the war, as were eleven other Survey personnel.[15]

After the war ended in August 1945, the Coast and Geodetic Survey again returned to peacetime scientific duties, although a significant amount of its work in the succeeding years was related to support of military and naval requirements during the Cold War.[15]

ESSA Corps

The seal of the ESSA Corps, a predecessor of the NOAA Corps that existed from 1965 to 1970.
ESSA Corps Basic Officer Training Class 21, 9 September 1966.

When the Coast and Geodetic Survey was transferred to the newly established

commissioned officers to operate Coast and Geodetic Survey ships and of providing a set of officers with technical skills in surveying for incorporation into the U.S. armed forces
during wartime.

Following the establishment of the ESSA,

vice admiral to help lead the agency. He served as the first Deputy Administrator of ESSA and was the first vice admiral, and at the time the highest-ranking officer, in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps and ESSA Corps. Rear Admiral James C. Tison Jr.
was the first director of the ESSA Corps.

NOAA Corps

The ESSA was reorganized and expanded to become the new National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on October 3, 1970.[19] As a result, the ESSA Corps was redesignated the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps, known informally as the NOAA Corps. Rear Admiral Harley D. Nygren was appointed as the first director of the new NOAA Corps.

In 1972, the NOAA Corps became the first

NOAA (or its ancestor organizations) to have an all-female crew.[21][22]

On January 2, 2014, Michael S. Devany was promoted to vice admiral upon assuming duties as Deputy Under Secretary for Operations at NOAA, becoming only the second vice admiral in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, ESSA Corps, and NOAA Corps, and the first since the promotion of Vice Admiral Karo in 1965.[23]

Directors of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, ESSA Corps, and NOAA Corps

No. Portrait Name Tenure Notes
United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps
1 Ernest L. Jones
(1876–1929) 		1917–1929 Superintendent (title changed to "Director" in 1919) of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey from 1915 until he died in 1929. As such, led the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps from its creation in 1917 until 1929.[24] Was a colonel and intelligence officer in the U.S. Army during World War I.[25]
2 Rear Admiral
Raymond S. Patton
(1882–1937) 		1929–1937 Director, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, which included leadership of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, from 1929 until he died in 1937. Served as director in the rank of captain until he was promoted to rear admiral in 1936. Was the first flag officer in Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps history.[24]
3 Rear Admiral
Leo O. Colbert
(1883–1968) 		1938–1950 Director, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, from 1938 to 1950, which included leadership of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps.[24]
4 Rear Admiral
Robert F.A. Studds
(1896–1962) 		1950–1955 Director, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, from 1950 to 1955, which included leadership of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps.[24]
5 Rear Admiral
H. Arnold Karo
(1903–1986) 		1955–1965 Last Director, Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps (1955–1965); served as Director of the Coast and Geodetic Survey. At end of the tour as Director, simultaneously transferred to the new ESSA Corps and received a promotion to vice admiral on 13 July 1965 to serve as Deputy Administrator, Environmental Science Services Administration (ESSA), from 1965 to 1967. The first officer in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps and ESSA Corps officer to achieve the rank of vice admiral.[24]
United States Environmental Science Services Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (ESSA Corps)
6 Rear Admiral
James C. Tison Jr.
(1908–1991) 		1965–1968 First Director, ESSA Corps. Served simultaneously as Director, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey (1965–1968).[24]
7 Rear Admiral
Don A. Jones
(1912–2000) 		1968–1970 Last Director, ESSA Corps. Served as Director, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey (1968–1970). Then served in NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps and was the first Director, National Ocean Survey, from 1970 to 1972.[24]
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA Corps)
8 Rear Admiral
Harley D. Nygren
(1924–2019) 		1970–1981 First Director, NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps[26]
9 Rear Admiral
Kelly E. Taggart
(1932–2014) 		1981–1986 [27]
10 Rear Admiral
Francis D. Moran
(b. 1935) 		1986–1990 [28]
11 Rear Admiral
Sigmund R. Petersen 		1990–1995 [29]
12 Rear Admiral
William L. Stubblefield
(b. 1940) 		1995–1999 [30]
13 Rear Admiral
Evelyn J. Fields
(b. 1949) 		1999–2003 The first
African-American in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, ESSA Corps, and NOAA Corps to serve as director.[31]
14 Rear Admiral
Samuel P. De Bow Jr. 		2003–2007 [32]
15 Rear Admiral
Jonathan W. Bailey 		2007–2012 [33]
16 Rear Admiral
Michael S. Devany 		2012–2014 Promoted to vice admiral on 2 January 2014, only the second officer to achieve that rank in the combined history of the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps, ESSA Corps, and NOAA Corps, and the first to do so since Vice Admiral Karo in 1965.[23] After a tour as Director, became Deputy Under Secretary for Operations, NOAA.[34][35]
17 Rear Admiral
David A. Score 		2014–2017 [36]
18 Rear Admiral
Michael J. Silah 		2017–2021 [37]
19 Rear Admiral
Nancy A. Hann 		2021–Present [38]

Commissioned officers

Ranks and insignia

The NOAA Corps uses the same naval

pay grades O-1 through O-9, respectively, although the rank of vice admiral
has been used only rarely in the history of the NOAA Corps and its predecessors.

Unless already on active duty as a commissioned officer in any of the other U.S. military services and transferring their commission from that service, new NOAA Corps officers are appointed via direct commission and must complete a 19-week basic officer training class (BOTC)[42] at the United States Coast Guard Officer Candidate School at the United States Coast Guard Academy before entering active duty.

NOAA Corps officers receive the same

pay as other members of the uniformed services. They cannot hold a dual commission with another U.S. military service but, as previously indicated, inter-service transfers are sometimes permitted from other services via 10 U.S.C. § 716
.

Unlike their United States Armed Forces counterparts, NOAA Corps officers do not require their rank appointments and promotions to be confirmed by the United States Senate, and only require approval from the president.[43]

Uniformed services pay grade Special grade O-10 O-9 O-8 O-7 O-6 O-5 O-4 O-3 O-2 O-1 Officer candidate/Cadet
NOAA
Vice admiral Rear admiral Rear admiral
(lower half) 		Captain Commander Lieutenant commander Lieutenant Lieutenant
(junior grade) 		Ensign
Abbreviation VADM RADM RDML CAPT CDR LCDR LT LTJG ENS
NATO code OF-10 OF-9 OF-8 OF-7 OF-6 OF-5 OF-4 OF-3 OF-2 OF-1 OF(D) Student officer

Rank flags

NOAA Corps flag officers are authorized the use of rank flags.

Militarization

NOAA Corps officers can be militarized by the President of the United States under the provisions of 33 U.S.C. § 3061, which states:

The President may, whenever in the judgment of the President a sufficient national emergency exists, transfer to the service and jurisdiction of a military department such vessels, equipment, stations, and officers of the Administration as the President considers to be in the best interest of the country. An officer of the Administration transferred under this section, shall, while under the jurisdiction of a military department, have proper military status and shall be subject to the laws, regulations, and orders for the government of the Army, Navy, or Air Force, as the case may be, insofar as the same may be applicable to persons whose retention permanently in the military service of the United States is not contemplated by law.[44]

Uniforms

For formal

service uniforms, the NOAA Corps wears the same Service Dress Blues and Service Dress Whites as the U.S. Navy, but with NOAA Corps insignia in place of U.S. Navy insignia. For daily work uniforms, the NOAA Corps wears the same Operational Dress Uniform (ODU) as the U.S. Coast Guard, but with NOAA Corps insignia in place of U.S. Coast Guard insignia
.

  • NOAA Corps Combination Cap Device
    NOAA Corps Combination Cap Device
  • NOAA Corps Device
    NOAA Corps Device
  • An ODU uniform ball cap, with lieutenant commander rank insignia
    An ODU
    lieutenant commander rank insignia
  • NOAA Corps officers wearing service dress blues
    NOAA Corps
    service dress blues

Awards and decoration

Main article: Awards and decorations of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Flag

Although the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey and ESSA had their own flags, neither the Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps or ESSA Corps did. The NOAA Corps adopted its flag on 7 March 2002, the last of the then-seven uniformed services of the United States to have its own distinctive flag.[45]

The flag has a

commission pennants flown by Coast and Geodetic Survey and NOAA vessels — lies within the circle,[45] and the NOAA Corps insignia is set within the triangle.[45] The flag is displayed in accordance with the customs and traditions of the uniformed services of the United States.[46]

Official song

Main article: Music of the NOAA Corps

In 1988, the NOAA Corps adopted a

sea chanty, "Into the Oceans and the Air," as its new official service song.[50][51]

See also

References

  1. ^ As the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps.
  2. ^ "About Office of Marine and Aviation Operations". Office of Marine and Aviation Operations. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  3. ^ "Ships Office of Marine and Aviation Operations". Office of Marine and Aviation Operations. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  4. ^ "Aircraft Operations Office of Marine and Aviation Operations". Office of Marine and Aviation Operations. Retrieved January 2, 2022.
  5. ^ Goodwin, Mel (July 19, 2012). Sbeih, Nadia (ed.). "NOAA Introduction" (PDF). U.S. Department of Commerce. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. National Ocean Service. p. 1.http://celebrating200years.noaa.gov/edufun/book/NOAAintroduction.pdf
  6. ^ "About the NOAA emblem and logo". noaa.gov. March 31, 2022. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  7. ^ "Forward With NOAA (NOAA Corps Song) - Office of Marine and Aviation Operations".
  8. ^ a b "History of the NOAA Commissioned Corps". Archived from the original on August 25, 2009.
  9. ^ Note: Also concurrently serves as Director, Office of Marine and Aviation Operations
  10. ^ Note: Also concurrently serves as Deputy Director for Operations, Office of Marine and Aviation Operations
  11. ^ "The NOAA Corps: Celebrating a Century of Service (1917-2017) | Office of Marine and Aviation Operations". NOAA Corps. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
  12. ^ a b US Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "NOAA Ocean Podcast: Celebrating 100 Years of NOAA Corps". NOAA Corps. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
  13. ^ "History of the NOAA Corps". Archived from the original on August 25, 2009.
  14. ^ a b Rensberger, Boyce (September 10, 1986). "The Few, the Proud -- the NOAA?" – via washingtonpost.com.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g "NOAA History /NOAA Legacy/NOAA Corps and the Coast and Geodetic Survey".
  16. ^ "NOAA History - NOAA Legacy Timeline - 1800s".
  17. ^ U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey (1901). Report Of The Superintendent of the Coast And Geodetic Survey Showing The Progress Of Work From July 1, 1900 To June 30, 1901. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 15, 17, 109.
  18. ^ "NOAA History - NOAA Legacy/Historic Documents - Reorg Plan Establishing ESSA Under Dept. of Commerce".
  19. ^ Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1970, reprinted with amendments in 5 U.S.C. app. at 1557–61. Section 3(d) states: "The Commissioned Officer Corps of the Environmental Science Services Administration shall become the Commissioned Officer Corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration."
  20. ^ "NOAA History - NOAA Legacy Timeline - 1970-2000".
  21. ^ teehan, sean. "NOAA ship leaves Woods Hole with first all-female crew".
  22. ^ Hefler, Janet (June 6, 2012). "Lt. Anna-Liza Villard-Howe takes command of NOAA research vessel".
  23. ^ a b Adams, Amilynn E. (December 9, 2016). "NOAA Corps Commissioned Personnel Center". NOAA Commissioned Personnel Center Cyberflash. U.S. Department of Commerce. Retrieved March 22, 2021.
  24. ^ a b c d e f g "Leaders of Coast Survey" (PDF). National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
  25. ^ "NOAA History - Tools of the Trade/Ships/C&GS Ships/LESTER JONES". www.history.noaa.gov.
  26. ^ "C&GS Biographies". Profiles in Time NOAA History. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved August 29, 2013.
  27. ^ "Jimmy Carter: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Nomination of Capt. Kelly E. Taggart To Be Director of the Commissioned Officer Corps".
  28. ^ "Ronald Reagan: Nomination of Rear admiral Francis D. Moran To Be Director of the Commissioned Officer Corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration".
  29. ^ "Nation's Smallest Service to Get New Leader". Associated Press.
  30. ^ "Rear admiral William Stubblefield Confirmed By Senate As Director Of Office Of NOAA Corps Operations". Archived from the original on August 6, 2013.
  31. ^ "Rear admiral Evelyn J. Fields Formally Assumes Command of Office of NOAA Corps Operations and NOAA Commissioned Corps". Archived from the original on February 12, 2008.
  32. ^ "President Bush Appoints Rear admiral Samuel P. De DeBow Jr. to Mississippi River Commission". Archived from the original on June 15, 2010.
  33. ^ Schrader, Kurt (September 19, 2012). "H.Res.792 - 112th Congress (2011-2012): Honoring Rear Admiral Jonathan W. Bailey of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Commissioned Officer Corps for his lifetime of selfless commitment and exemplary service to the United States". www.congress.gov.
  34. ^ "Vice Adm. Devany named NOAA Deputy Under Secretary".
  35. ^ "RADM Michael S. Devany, NOAA Director, NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps Director, NOAA Office of Marine and Aviation Operations" (PDF). US Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 15, 2013. Retrieved January 10, 2014.
  36. ^ "Rear Adm. David A. Score to lead NOAA Corps and Office of Marine and Aviation Operations". US Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved January 10, 2014.
  37. ^ "Michael Silah to lead NOAA Corps and Office of Marine and Aviation Operations". US Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved September 3, 2017.
  38. ^ "Nancy Hann | Office of Marine and Aviation Operations". www.omao.noaa.gov. Retrieved November 25, 2021.
  39. ^ [1] 10 USC 201. Pay grades: assignment to; general rules
  40. ^ a b [2] S.2388 – National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps Amendments Act of 2012
  41. ^ "Heraldry | Office of Marine and Aviation Operations". www.omao.noaa.gov.
  42. ^ "Basic Officer Training". www.omao.noaa.gov.
  43. ^ "S.679 - Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act of 2011, 112th Congress (2011-2012)". U.S. Congress. Retrieved October 20, 2021.
  44. ^ "33 U.S. Code § 3061 - Cooperation with and transfer to military departments". LII / Legal Information Institute. Retrieved January 3, 2022.
  45. ^ a b c d "National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (U.S.)". Flags of the World. April 4, 2015. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
  46. ^ "NAO 201-6 A: Official Flags of NOAA". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. May 11, 2021 [March 15, 2015]. Retrieved November 8, 2022.
  47. NOAA. June 12, 2019. Archived from the original
    on July 26, 2019. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  48. NPR
    . September 5, 2007. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  49. ^ "NOAA: The Musical". govexec.com. Government Executive Magazine. Retrieved July 26, 2019.
  50. NOAA
    . Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  51. Norwich Bulletin
    . June 15, 2017. Retrieved July 26, 2019.

External links

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