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Page 1 | Page 2 | Page 3 | Page 4 A HIGH-DEF FUTUREThree thousand floats was the number that Argo scientists decided would provide adequate density and be practical to sustain. The floats, which cost $15,000 each to build and another $15,000 to operate over a four-year lifespan, cover the oceans at a rate of one per every three degrees latitude and longitude.  
The science team hopes that funding agencies in the United States and elsewhere will continue to consider Argo worth the cost. Every year will require the replacement of one-fourth of the array. For its part, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has committed to funding Argo through 2011 but there are more than 50 agencies around the world involved in administering Argo. There is, said Roemmich, a tendency among Argo scientists to downplay the 3,000-float milestone lest support wane just as what Davis calls the "first data point" of Argo is collected.  
"If we were to say that the Argo array is complete, that could be interpreted to mean no more floats are required," said Roemmich. "The message that we want to convey is that Argo has achieved a lot in getting a global array out there (but) the hard work is just beginning." |
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