From R&D to end users applications in operational oceanography: The navy's "SOAP" case study

For the last ten years, the CMO/BRESM has conducted an operational program for Ocean Analysis and Prediction SOAP, whose goal has been to support sea activities with high resolution mesoscale ocean nowcast products. Successive prototypes have been generated, operated and improved in tandem with a continuous re-evaluation of Navy Needs. This strategy played a key-role in defining the concept of “real-time integrated oceanography” which relies on remote and in situ ocean observations, (a hierarchy of) ocean models and data assimilation methods. The paper focuses on the results of the latter feasability study for next SOAP prototype: the military motivation for developing new prototypes is to extend the application domain of SOAP operational products from the operative (~ a description of the synoptic scale) to the tactical ( ~ a tailored product to strategic needs) relevance. Current SOAP P2 system is as a transition system pulled by end-user’s requirements and designed by research oceanographers from existing tools and models. The development of SOAP P3 has just started and will benefit from the emergence of an increasing offer of ocean modelling results, pushed by the GODAE initiative. It will be based on MERCATOR high resolution prototypes. From that starting point future developments will have to address both issues of defense specific requirements for high resolution ocean modeling and computation of relevant acoustical products for military applications. Especially, the crucial needs for assessing the end-users’ products reliability should be explored.