The HMSC-NOAA partnership is a key element to our research success.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is a U.S. government agency that studies the conditions of the oceans, the atmosphere, and major waterways. Four primary NOAA-based research centers are located on the HMSC campus. Combined, these labs offer powerful research tools to our research staff and visiting scientists.


NOAA: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

From daily weather forecasts, severe storm warnings, and climate monitoring to fisheries management, coastal restoration and supporting marine commerce, NOAA’s products and services support economic vitality and affect more than one-third of the country's gross domestic product. NOAA scientists use cutting-edge research and instrumentation to provide citizens, planners, emergency managers, and others with reliable timely information.


Northwest Fisheries Science Center

The Northwest Fisheries Science Center researches the ecology of marine and anadromous fish species living in the Pacific Northwest, working to protect their habitats and resources and sustain their ecosystems. The Newport Research Station at HMSC is NCFSC’s only ocean-port facility and researchers at the station focus on species such as groundfish and salmon.


Alaska Fisheries Science Center

HMSC hosts NOAA’s Alaska Fisheries Science Center’s Fisheries Behavioral Ecology Program, which aims to provide the information needed to conserve populations of fish and their habitats, as well as improve survey techniques. The program researches the effects of fish behavior and environmental variables on the distribution, survival and recruitment of species

Pacific Marine Environmental Lab

Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory’s Earth Ocean Interactions Program (EIO) works to discover, measure, understand and predict ecological impacts of the natural chemical, biological and geological processes between the solid Earth and ocean. PMEL EIO contributes to NOAA’s mission to holistically understand marine ecosystems through exploration and research on hydrothermal vents, their impacts on the global ocean, and their unique chemosynthetic biological communities.

Marine Operation Center - PNW (MOC-2)

The NOAA Marine Operations Center-Pacific (MOC-P) supports five ships. The Newport facility is the homeport for two NOAA ships, and it oversees the Pacific, Pacific-Islands, and Atlantic marine centers and all NOAA ship operations. The ships in NOAA’s Pacific fleet collect data essential to protecting marine mammals, coral reefs, and historic shipwrecks, managing commercial marine fish stocks, understanding climate processes, and producing nautical charts that help keep mariners safe. NOAA ships also deploy and help maintain buoys that gather oceanographic and weather information and warn of tsunamis.