- A bipartisan group of senators and two Democratic House committees are challenging the National Science Foundation's (NSF) plan to dismantle the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI), a crucial ocean monitoring network.
- The OOI, a $386 million network of over 900 sensors, has tracked ocean circulation, climate change, and extreme weather for a decade, with data freely available and contributing to over 500 scientific publications.
- The NSF plans to remove most OOI instruments by 2027, citing 'evolving scientific priorities,' a decision that scientists say was made without warning or scientific review.
- Senators, led by Jeff Merkley and Lisa Murkowski, argue the dismantling threatens coastal community safety and undermines national monitoring capabilities, urging a halt and thorough review.
- House Democrats accuse the NSF of illegal action, stating that the agency failed to provide the required 30-day congressional notification before decommissioning assets valued at over $2.5 million, and criticize the financial waste of destroying scientific infrastructure.
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