Global maritime situational awareness
Encyclopedia
Global Maritime Situational Awareness (GMSA) is defined in the U.S. National Concept of Operations for Maritime Domain Awareness, December 2007, as "the comprehensive fusion of data from every agency and by every nation to improve knowledge of the maritime domain." It is an integral element of Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA)
.
Essentially, no one country, department, or agency holds all of the authorities and capabilities to have effective Maritime Domain Awareness on its own. However, by combining separate pieces of information from agencies at the federal, state, local, and tribal level around the world with information from the maritime industry and from non-governmental organizations, it is possible to compile a very clear picture of the maritime domain. GMSA results from developing that complete picture and monitoring it persistently to identify trends and detect anomalies.
awareness-related activities supporting maritime information collection, fusion, analysis and
dissemination. The Director co-chairs the U.S. National MDA Stakeholder Board, sits on the MDA Stakeholder Board Executive Steering Committee, and is a member of the U.S. Maritime Security Policy Coordinating Committee (MSPCC).
The GMSA staff consists of and is supported by dedicated subject matter experts from across the federal government as selected by the Director from departmental nominees from the Department of Homeland Security
, Department of Defense
, Director of National Intelligence, Department of Justice
, Department of Transportation
, Department of Commerce, Department of State
, Department of the Treasury
, and Department of Energy's
National Nuclear Security Administration.
The GMSA Director and staff form the Office of Global Maritime Situational Awareness.
Maritime domain awareness
Maritime domain awareness is defined as the effective understanding of anything associated with the maritime domain that could impact the security, safety, economy, or environment. It is part of a US government interagency and international maritime security effort...
.
Essentially, no one country, department, or agency holds all of the authorities and capabilities to have effective Maritime Domain Awareness on its own. However, by combining separate pieces of information from agencies at the federal, state, local, and tribal level around the world with information from the maritime industry and from non-governmental organizations, it is possible to compile a very clear picture of the maritime domain. GMSA results from developing that complete picture and monitoring it persistently to identify trends and detect anomalies.
Development of GMSA in the U.S.
In the United States, The Director GMSA is responsible for effective access to maritime information and data critical to building the situational awareness component of global MDA. The Director develops and recommends policy guidance for coordinated collection, fusion, analysis and dissemination of GMSA information and products, as well as information integration policies, protocols and standards. The Director also recommends improvements to situationalawareness-related activities supporting maritime information collection, fusion, analysis and
dissemination. The Director co-chairs the U.S. National MDA Stakeholder Board, sits on the MDA Stakeholder Board Executive Steering Committee, and is a member of the U.S. Maritime Security Policy Coordinating Committee (MSPCC).
The GMSA staff consists of and is supported by dedicated subject matter experts from across the federal government as selected by the Director from departmental nominees from the Department of Homeland Security
United States Department of Homeland Security
The United States Department of Homeland Security is a cabinet department of the United States federal government, created in response to the September 11 attacks, and with the primary responsibilities of protecting the territory of the United States and protectorates from and responding to...
, Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
, Director of National Intelligence, Department of Justice
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...
, Department of Transportation
United States Department of Transportation
The United States Department of Transportation is a federal Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967...
, Department of Commerce, Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
, Department of the Treasury
United States Department of the Treasury
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue...
, and Department of Energy's
United States Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
National Nuclear Security Administration.
National Nuclear Security Administration
The United States National Nuclear Security Administration is part of the United States Department of Energy. It works to improve national security through the military application of nuclear energy...
The GMSA Director and staff form the Office of Global Maritime Situational Awareness.