The Caro-COOPS Vision

The key to wise management of coastal ocean resources and to effective mitigation of the impacts of coastal hazards is an understanding of how the coastal ocean has behaved in the past and of how it is likely to behave in the future. The vision behind Caro-COOPS is that these societal and economic advantages can be realized through implementation of an integrated system of observations, data communications and management, and modeling that will deliver regular, comprehensive information on the state of the Carolinas' coastal ocean. This information, in turn, will be freely available and utilized in a variety of ways that will protect lives, property, and natural resources and enhance the quality of our environment and human lives.

Caro-COOPS aims to make this broad vision a reality, making ocean monitoring and prediction a routine activity, such as that involved in weather forecasting. Caro-COOPS will contribute to an information system for the US that will serve interests from marine research to marine operations to fisheries resources.