The future of the United States academic research fleet

The U.S. fleet of research ships that make up the academic fleet coordinated by University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System (UNOLS) is probably in the best shape it has ever been in. We have many new, large and very capable ships that are run efficiently and are facilitating new advances in ocean science. However, many of the ships will be reaching the end of their lifetime in the coming decade and will need replacement. In the coming year the Fleet Improvement Committee of UNOLS will be determining the science mission requirements for a replacement of ALPHA HELIX in Alaska and for a coastal research ship on the U.S. east coast. During this process the committee will also address the issue of whether fisheries research could be accommodated on academic research ships that have previously been devoted solely to general oceanographic research. This paper will discuss the process required to keep the fleet up to date.