SEAREX sosess SEA - AIR EXCHANGE PROGRAM Participating Institutions: Sponsored by: ~ . University of Connecticut Office for the International Decade W304 of Ocean Exploration Washington, D.C. 20550 October 2, 1978 AWOL ASOb. California Institute of Technology Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Scripps Institute of Oceanography Texas A & M University University of Miami CFR/CNRS, France Yale University National Science Foundation Mr. Joe W. Merrill Project Engineer Department of Energy Pacific Area Support Office P.O. Box 29939 Honolulu, HI th © Nya8 96820 Dear Joe, I am in receipt of your letter with enclosure dated 19 September 1978. You expressed concern with at least two items which I would like to answer here. Enclosed is a sketch of a typical tower section approximately 6 feet long, 4 feet wide and 6 feet high (Enclosure 1). The tower stairway is enclosed within the tower itself by 2" 0.D. aluminum braces, vertically, horizontally, and diagonally. The tower top, as well as all outboard platforms, is surrounded by a guard rail of which the top rail is 42-1/4!" high and the height of the middle rail is 22-5/8"' (Enclosure 2). In addition, during the tower construction, personnel working on the tower itself will be wearing safety harnesses. Secondly, we have purchased and sent to Enewetak an elaborate red flashing beacon which is to be placed on a mast on top of the tower where it will be in continual operation. Your comment regarding '"...continual helicopter operations..." has become a matter of concern here. A major portion of the SEAREX Program has been designed to determine the amounts of low level pollutants in the atmosphere at Enewetak which have been carried there from continental areas. Hence, it is important that our sampling apparratas does not contain any aircraft exhaust or other locally produced pollutants. Therefore, I would like to learn more regarding the helicopter operations (flight tracks, schedule, destinations, etc.} and I would greatly appreciate your obtaining this information on my behalf. A point of great interest would be determining whether these flights could be re-routed around Sand Island so as not to interfere with our sampling sector (30° ENE to 195° SSW). Thank you for staying on top of our request for certain construction materials. I hope you were able to find much of what we need already on Enewetak. Also, I certainly would appreciate being brought up-to-date on costs to date. Oniy two minor invoices have been received here thus far. regards, \ Roger §. Cayer, Jr. Coordinating Office: Graduate School of Oceanography, Box 3, Universi: SABRove DOFIANALO ode Island 02881 (Phone 401-792-6256) ec: Dr. R. Duce/Dr. E. Reese AWOLISOd3Y ° NOWLDITIOD University of Rhode Island On xO@ | (W/encls)