Scientists warn Trump plan to axe US ocean monitoring system will leave world ‘flying blind’ Dismantling the US-funded Ocean Observatories Initiative, a key part of the global ocean observation network, will severely degrade weather predictions and El Niño forecasts, leading to significant economic consequences. Experts warn that losing these observations, which are vital for tracking climate change indicators like ocean heating, will make forecasts dangerously inaccurate and leave us ‘flying blind’. The potential economic costs, from agriculture to disaster response, far outweigh the savings from decommissioning the system.

• The Trump administration’s plan to dismantle the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) will severely degrade weather predictions and El Niño forecasts.
• The OOI is a critical component of the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), providing essential data for climate monitoring and early warning systems.
• Losing US observations would cause a significant increase in error for ocean heating rate estimates, undermining climate science.
• The economic consequences of inaccurate forecasts and warnings could be substantial, impacting sectors like agriculture, insurance, and disaster response.
• The European Union plans to boost its own ocean monitoring through the OceanEye initiative.
• Experts consider the decommissioning of the OOI to be ‘penny-wise, pound foolish’ given the high costs associated with climate-related disasters.