The Office of the Oceanographer of the Navy, a key advisor to the Chief of Naval Operations, held a change of office and retirement ceremony today at the U.S. Naval Observatory.

Rear Adm. (lower half) Timothy Gallaudet, who also assumes the duties of navigator of the Navy, relieved Rear Adm. (upper half) Jonathan White who retired after 32 years of service.

"This is an incredible opportunity and I feel very humbled to serve as the Oceanographer of the Navy," said Oceanographer of the Navy Rear Adm. Tim Gallaudet. "I believe this position will allow us, Naval Oceanography, and the responsibilities I have as oceanographer and navigator to address critical challenges the Navy faces today. We're working to do more with less using partnerships with international agencies around the world."

As the senior oceanographer in the Navy, who also serves as commander, Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command, Gallaudet will provide naval leadership on all issues related to oceanography, meteorology, hydrography, precise time, climate change, the Arctic, maritime domain awareness and geospatial and celestial referencing. He will also serve as the senior policy advisor for issues related to national ocean policy and governance.

As Navigator of the Navy, Gallaudet will provide policy and requirements guidance to ensure naval forces have state-of-the-practice positioning, navigation and timing capabilities for accurate operational maneuver and optimum weapons employment, enabling a competitive advantage across the full spectrum of naval and joint warfare.

He previously served with the Naval European Meteorology and Oceanography Center, Rota, Spain; the Naval European Meteorology and Oceanography Detachment, Souda Bay, Greece; the Naval Oceanographic Office, and the staffs the Commander, Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command and Oceanographer of the Navy as well as Deputy Oceanographer of the Navy for the Chief of Naval Operations.