Bedford Institute of Oceanography
Encyclopedia
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
government ocean research
Oceanography
Oceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...
facility located in Dartmouth
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
Dartmouth founded in 1750, is a community and planning area of the Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia. Located on the eastern shore of Halifax Harbour, Dartmouth has been nicknamed the City of Lakes after the large number of lakes located in the city.On April 1, 1996, the provincial...
in the Halifax Regional Municipality in Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
. The Bedford Institute of Oceanography is the largest ocean research station in Canada. Established in 1962 as Canada's first, and currently largest, federal centre for oceanographic research, BIO derives its name from the Bedford Basin
Bedford Basin
Bedford Basin is a large enclosed bay, forming the northwestern end of Halifax Harbour on Canada's Atlantic coast.-Geography:Geographically, the basin is situated entirely within the Halifax Regional Municipality and is oriented northwest-southeast, measuring approximately 8 kilometres long and 5...
, an inland bay comprising the northern part of Halifax Harbour, upon which it is located.
Spread out over 40 acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s (160,000 m²) of former Canadian Navy
Canadian Forces Maritime Command
The Royal Canadian Navy , is the naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the unified Canadian Forces. Operating 33 warships and several auxiliary vessels, the Royal Canadian Navy consists of 8,500 Regular Force and 5,100 Primary Reserve sailors, supported by...
land near Shannon Park
Shannon Park, Nova Scotia
Shannon Park is a former military community on the eastern shore of Halifax Harbour in the Halifax Regional Municipality in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is immediately south of the A. Murray MacKay Bridge in the city of Dartmouth...
in Dartmouth
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
Dartmouth founded in 1750, is a community and planning area of the Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia. Located on the eastern shore of Halifax Harbour, Dartmouth has been nicknamed the City of Lakes after the large number of lakes located in the city.On April 1, 1996, the provincial...
, BIO consists of a series of interconnected buildings housing research labs and offices, as well as docks for Canadian Coast Guard
Canadian Coast Guard
The Canadian Coast Guard is the coast guard of Canada. It is a federal agency responsible for providing maritime search and rescue , aids to navigation, marine pollution response, marine radio, and icebreaking...
and Canadian Navy research vessels.
As the federal government seeks to concentrate its operations in the Halifax Regional Municipality, BIO is being considered for additional office buildings to house other non-oceanographic and non-research organizations and their employees. The new headquarters for the Coast Guard is currently under construction there.
Current operations
BIO houses several organizations from various federal departments which perform targeted researchResearch
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
mandated by government or in partnership, advise on marine
Ocean
An ocean is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the hydrosphere. Approximately 71% of the Earth's surface is covered by ocean, a continuous body of water that is customarily divided into several principal oceans and smaller seas.More than half of this area is over 3,000...
environments, provide navigation
Navigation
Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...
al chart
Chart
A chart is a graphical representation of data, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart"...
s covering Georges Bank
Georges Bank
Georges Bank is a large elevated area of the sea floor which separates the Gulf of Maine from the Atlantic Ocean and is situated between Cape Cod, Massachusetts and Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia ....
to the Canadian Arctic, and respond to environmental emergencies.
Housed organisations include:
- Canadian Coast Guard
- Department of Fisheries and Oceans (Maritime Region)
- Canadian Hydrographic ServiceCanadian Hydrographic ServiceThe Canadian Hydrographic Service is Canada's hydrographic office, with responsibility for performing hydrographic surveys and publishing paper and electronic nautical charts...
(Atlantic)
- Canadian Hydrographic Service
- Department of Natural Resources (Atlantic Region)
- Geological Survey of Canada (Atlantic)
- Department of the Environment
- Department of National DefenceDepartment of National Defence (Canada)The Department of National Defence , frequently referred to by its acronym DND, is the department within the government of Canada with responsibility for all matters concerning the defence of Canada...
- Working with CHS Atlantic.