The Naval Hydrographic and Oceanographic Service (french: Service hydrographique et océanographique de la Marine or SHOM) is a French public establishment of an administrative nature (french:

établissement public à caractère administratif An Établissement public à caractère administratif (EPA; literally translating to "public establishment of an administrative nature") is, in France, a public law legal person with a certain administrative and financial autonomy to fulfil a missio ...

) administered by the Ministry of Defence. It is the successor to the Dépôt des cartes et plans de la Marine, founded in 1720 which became the Naval Hydrographic Service in 1886 and the Naval and Oceanographic Service in 1971. Its present form was set up by decree number 2007-800 on 11 May 2007. Its board is presided over by the

Chief of Staff of the French Navy The Chief of the Naval Staff (French: Chef d’état-major de la Marine, acronym: CEMM) is a French general officer, adviser to the Chief of the Defence Staff for the French Navy and responsible to the Minister of the Armed Forces for preparing ...

(french: Chef d'État-Major de la Marine) and the body is directed by a director-general.

Aims

This public body has several aims, including the provision of : * a public service in

hydrography Hydrography is the branch of applied sciences which deals with the measurement and description of the physical features of oceans, seas, coastal areas, lakes and rivers, as well as with the prediction of their change over time, for the primar ...

and maritime

cartography Cartography (; from grc, χάρτης , "papyrus, sheet of paper, map"; and , "write") is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an i ...

, including the collection, elaboration, confirmation and spread of nautical information useful to civil or naval navigators and to all who sail for professional or pleasure, as well as those responsible for care of the coast * to support the navy's hydrographers,

oceanographer Oceanography (), also known as oceanology and ocean science, is the scientific study of the oceans. It is an Earth science, which covers a wide range of topics, including ecosystem dynamics; ocean currents, waves, and geophysical fluid dynamic ...

s and

meteorologist A meteorologist is a scientist who studies and works in the field of meteorology aiming to understand or predict Earth's atmospheric phenomena including the weather. Those who study meteorological phenomena are meteorologists in research, while t ...

s concerning specific information on maritime matters to ensure the optimal running of the navy's weapons systems (radar, sonar, infra-red sensors, carrier-borne aircraft etc.). SHOM is made up of oceanographic and hydrographic groups, as well as a school, and employs 500 naval and civil personnel. Its fleets consists of 5 boats: the ''Beautemps-Beaupré'', the ''Borda'', the ''La Pérouse'', the ''Laplace'' and the '' Pourquoi-Pas ?''. SHOM works in cooperation with many other national organisations, including

IFREMER IFREMER (Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer; ) is an oceanographic institution in Brest, France. Scope of works Ifremer focuses its research activities in the following areas: * Monitoring, use and enhancement of coa ...

(with whom it shares the ''Pourquoi-Pas ?''), Météo-France, the CNRS, the

University of Western Brittany The University of Western Brittany (french: Université de Bretagne-Occidentale; UBO) is a French university, located in Brest, in the Academy of Rennes. On a national scale, in terms of graduate employability, the university oscillates between 1 ...

and the

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

. It participates in international hydrographic projects and programmes co-ordinated by the

International Hydrographic Organization The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is an intergovernmental organisation representing hydrography. , the IHO comprised 98 Member States. A principal aim of the IHO is to ensure that the world's seas, oceans and navigable waters a ...

, of which France is a member.

Publications

Among the SHOM's nautical publications are *

maritime chart A nautical chart is a graphic representation of a sea area and adjacent coastal regions. Depending on the scale of the chart, it may show depths of water and heights of land (topographic map), natural features of the seabed, details of the coa ...

s in paper or electronic form ("cartes électroniques de navigation" or ENC) *signal books, containing audio and visual signals for ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore use, as well as details of French lighthouses *Radio signal-books, for radio-electric navigation aids and radio-communications *nautical instructions and nautical instructions for those who sail for pleasure *tidal almanacks and atlas of currents * Guides and works on navigation : ** navigator's guides ** a guide to the symbols and abbreviations on maritime charts (1D) ** International rules for preventing maritime accidents (Réglement international pour prévenir les abordages en mer, or RIPAM) (2A and 2B) ** Maritime signals (3C) * the "Groupe d'avis aux navigateurs", a weekly bulletin with corrections to the above works * the journal ''Annales hydrographiques''

Directors

Notes

External links

SHOM - official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Naval Hydrographic And Oceanographic Service National hydrographic offices Oceanographic organizations Hydrographic Maritime organizations