Ocean Climate studies to describe average and extreme conditions, seasonal and longer term variability, and trends or changes over time. Environmental descriptions to provide advice on marine activity and operations, such as advection and dispersion of toxins or contaminants, wave impact on structures, transportation and coastal infrastructure, oil spill and search and rescue trajectory models, and assessments of development impacts. Program Structure Ocean Sciences Division conducts research on the physical and biological oceanography of marine systems on the Canadian east coast. Its mandate is to provide an accurate description of the processes, events, and features in the nearshore, on the continental shelves, and in the offshore. The primary objective of the program is to determine the strength and variability of the ocean circulation system to understand the global and regional climate system and to improve our ability to predict climate variability and climate change.
Projects have a strong focus on the Northwest Atlantic and Labrador Sea.
Research includes ocean modelling and data assimilation studies, regional physical oceanographic observational programs in the Labrador and Irminger Seas and the Newfoundland Basin of the Northwest Atlantic, air-sea flux measurements, models and analysis and process studies on oceanic mixing in the deep sea and on the shelves. The Arctic Ocean Circulation program seeks to determine the role that the circulation of the Arctic Ocean plays in the global climate system and the regional climate of the Arctic Archipelago and Atlantic Canada. The program must also maintain an expertise on the water masses, currents and ice conditions in the various passages of the Arctic Archipelago, Baffin Bay and Davis Strait. Such expertise will enable us to provide advice when dealing with environmental issues, emergencies and climate change issues. Coastal Ocean Climate Detection and interpretation of climatic variability in Canada's coastal ocean is of vital importance to the protection and wise use of its resources.