Establishment

The IODE Steering Group on the GTSPP was established through Recommendation IODE-XIII.4 (1990) and its annex 1 (see below) . The IODE Committee, at its 22nd Session (2013) modified the terms of reference of the Group through Recommendation IODE-XXII.11:

(Membership here)

 Recommendation IODE-XXII.11

COMPOSITION OF THE STEERING GROUP FOR THE GLOBAL TEMPERATURE AND SALINITY PROFILE PROGRAMME (GTSPP)

The IOC Committee on International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange,

Acknowledging the importance to support global observation projects,

Recalling the establishment of the GTSPP Program through Recommendation IODE-XV.4 (1996) and its annex 1 to address Temperature and Salinity profile data management at global level,

Noting with satisfaction the work of GTSPP in establishing a long term temperature and salinity profile data structure,

Noting the close relationship with the World Ocean Database (WOD),

Recommends the following revised Terms of Reference and General membership of GTSPP

The Steering Group shall conduct the program for the collection and management of temperature and salinity profiledata sets to support IODE (International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange) and JCOMM (Joint Technical Commission for Oceanography and Marine Meteorology) requirements with the following Terms of Reference and general membership.

Terms of Reference

1. Provide scientific and technical guidance for the program in the implementation and enhancement of the GTSPP including:
   1. Near real time data (observations within 30 days) acquisition;
   2. Non real time data (observations older than 30 days or data never circulated on the Global Telecommunication System) acquisition;
   3. Communications infrastructures;
   4. Quality control and analysis procedures;
   5. Continuously managed database;
   6. Ocean data and meta data standards; and
   7. Data and information products.
2. In conjunction with user groups and data collectors, design and implement data flow monitoring systems to ensure that the data are collected, processed and distributed according to agreed schedules and responsibilities.
3. Collaborate with international projects and global scientific programs such as GCOS (Global Climate Observing System) and GOOS (Global Ocean Observing System) to assemble process and disseminate data managed by GTSPP.
4. Actively promote the GTSPP and provide information to the users of GTSPP services, such as the planners of international science programs.
5. Provide GTSPP status reports and other requested material to the IODE committee and JCOMM ETDMP, to international programs in which GTSPP is a participant.

General Membership

1. One representative from each of the core participating countries (initially Australia, Canada, France, Japan, and USA) as identified by the countries.  The core participating countries are the IOC Member States and WMO Members actively engaged in data and information exchanges with the long term archive centre of GTSPP.
2. Experts from one or more Member / Member States of other programs/projects that are of relevance to GTSPP may accompany these representatives.
3. Representatives invited by the SG from Member States of the IODE and JCOMM and representatives of oceanographic projects those are important to GTSPP operations.
4. The Chair will be selected by the Steering Group and will be reviewed by them every two sessions.
5. Funding for participants and sessions of the SG will be provided by Members or Member States.

Recommendation IODE-III.4

GLOBAL TEMPERATURE-SALINITY PILOT PROJECT (GTSPP)

The IOC Committee on International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange,

Noting Recommendation 4 (JC-IGOSS-V) of the Fifth session of the Joint IOC-WMO Working Committee on IGOSS on the development of GTSPP,

Noting that the IOC Assembly at its Fifteenth Session welcomed the proposed GTSPP,

Having reviewed the reports of the ad hoc Consultative meetings on the GTSPP held in Washington, USA (January 1989) and in Ottawa, Canada (July 1989),

Recognizing the urgent need to meet the growing requirements for a global knowledge of ocean temperature and salinity distributions,

Recognizing the need for timeliness and an improved reliability and completeness of data exchange, in particular for the needs of ocean components of the World Climate Programme,

Having considered the Report and Recommendations of the IODE Workshop on Global Temperature-Salinity Pilot Project (New York, USA, 15-16 January 1990),

Having also reviewed the draft Project Plan and the Quality Control Manual for GTSPP presented at the. workshop,

Recommends that the IOC:

(i) approves the implementation of the GTSPP as an IODE-IGOSS pilot project according to the concepts described in the Draft Project Plan;

(ii) invites WMO to endorse this recommendation;

(iii) invites Member States, participating in lODE and IGOSS, to join the GTSPP;

(iv) approves the initiation of the GTSPP in 1990 for an initial period of five years;

(v) urges Member States of IOC and WMO to support the GTSPP by improving and accelerating the exchange of ocean temperature and salinity data with GTSPP through the existing lODE and IGOSS channels;

(vi) invites directors of international scientific programmes (such as TOGA and WOCE) to nominate points of contact, charged with encouraging and co-ordinating the dataflow between the programmes and GTSPP;

(vii) approves the establishment of a Steering Group on GTSPP with the Terms of Reference and Proposed Composition shown in Annex 1 to this Recommendation;

(viii) requests the Steering Group on the GTSPP, in collaboration with other IOC and WMO Member States, to proceed with further planning and implementation of the GTSPP;

(ix)     requests the Secretary IOC to publish as soon as possible the GTSPP Project Plan and the GTSPP Quality Control Manual, and to submit the manual to the Task Team on Data Quality Control.

Annex 1 to the Recommendation IODE-XlII.4
TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR THE STEERING GROUP ON THE GTSPP.

1. Complete development of the GTSPP Project Plan and Implementation Schedule following the principles described in the current draft.

2. Complete development of the GTSPP Quality Control Manual

3. Meet semi-annually at the expense of the participating countries to review the status of the implementation and further develop the GTSPP.

4. Actively promote the GTSPP and provide information to the users of GTSPP services, such as the planners of international Science Programmes.

5. Provide scientific and technical guidance to GTSPP participants in the implementation and further development of the scientific and data management aspects of the six GTSPP elements including:
- near real-time data acquisition
- non real-time data acquisition communications infrastructures
- quality control procedures
- continuously managed database GTSPP data and information products

6. Prepare, maintain and distribute documentation relevant to operation of the project.

7. Report after each meeting and as otherwise necessary to keep aU lODE and IGOSS contacts, as well as the representatives of the science programmes, informed on the status of implementation of the GTSPP.

8. Submit status reports on the GTSPP to the sessions of the Committee on lODE and the JC-IGOSS.

9. Prepare and submit to the sessions of the Committee on lODE and the JC-IGOSS a report on the status of IGOSS-IODE data flow.

10. The group will select a Chairman at its first session and will review the Chairmanship biannually. The composition of the group is as proposed below. The composition of the group will be regularly reviewed in consultation between the Chairmen of lODE and IGOSS.

The proposed Composition of the Steering Group for the coming intersessional period will be as foUows:

(i) One representative from each of the participating countries (initially Australia, Canada, France, USA, USSR) as chosen and funded by the countries, to provide expertise to the project. These representatives may be accompanied by one or more experts;
(ii)     A representative from WOCE and TOGA, each nominated by the appropriate Scientific Steering Group, to provide scientific guidance to the project;
(iii)     An additional invited scientific advisor selected by the Chairman of the Steering Group on the GTSPP;
(iv)     The IGOSS-IODE and IODE-IGOSS Rapporteurs;
(v)     Representatives from the RNODC's-IGOSS will be invited to participate in this Group.

In 1996, the IODE Committee, through Recommendation IODE-XV.4 recomended  "that the IGOSS-IODE Global Temperature-Salinity Pilot Project become a permanent operational programme under the co-sponsorship of IGOSS and IODE with the title the IGOSS-IODE Global Temperature-Salinity Programme". The Steering Group remained as established in 1990.

JCOMM-I (2001) noted that GTSPP was originally a joint programme of IODE and the Joint IOC/WMO Cmmittee on IGOSS and decided that, as such, the GTSPP was now jointly sponsored by JCOMM and IODE.

An ad hoc Session of the Joint IOC-WMO Steering Group on the GTSPP was held last in 2004.

In 2010 this was continued as the Joint IODE-JCOMM Steering Group for the GTSPP.

Meetings of the Group

	Fifth Session of the Joint IODE-JCOMM Steering Group for the Global Temperature-Salinity Profile Programme University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain 26 −28 June 2019
	Fourth Session of the Joint IODE-JCOMM Steering Group for the Global Temperature-Salinity Profile Programme IOC Project Office for IODE, Oostende, Belgium, 11 - 13 April 2018
report page	Third Session of the Joint JCOMM-IODE Steering Group for the Global Temperature-Salinity Profile Programme  IOC Project Office for IODE, Oostende, Belgium, 11-13 April 2018
	Second Session of the Joint JCOMM-IODE Steering Group for the Global Temperature-Salinity Profile Programme IOC Project Office for IODE, Oostende, Belgium, 17-20 June 2014
	2012 Meeting of the Joint IODE-JCOMM Steering Group for the Global Temperature-Salinity Profile Programme IOC Project Office for IODE, Oostende, Belgium, 16-18 April 2012
	2010 Meeting of the Joint IODE-JCOMM Steering Group for the Global Temperature-Salinity Profile Programme IOC Project Office for IODE, Oostende, Belgium, 5-7 May 2010
html on GTSSPP web site	Ad Hoc Session of the Joint IOC-WMO Steering Group on GloLINKbal Temperature-Salinity Porfile Program, Southampton, UK, 27 Sep, 2004
	GTSPP Annual Report for 2003 (2003) - by R. Keeley (Canada), C. Sun (USA) and L. Petit de la Villeon (France)
	GTSPP Annual Report for 2002 (2002) - by R. Keeley (Canada), C. Sun (USA) and L. Petit de la Villeon (France)
	Global Temperature-Salinity Profile Programme (GTSPP) - Overview and Future (IOC Technical Series 49) - by J.R. Wilson 1998
	JOINT IOC-WMO STEERING GROUP ON GLOBAL TEMPERATURE-SALINITY PILOT PROJECT, Fourth Session, Washington DC, USA, 16-19 April 1996 (IOC/INF-1033) 1996