NANOOS began in the fall of 2003. A Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was drawn up at the first workshop to establish the purpose and future direction of NANOOS and to guide all activities and relationships among members. Since its inception in 2003, workshops have been held on governance, system design, industry involvement, and region-specific interests such as dissolved oxygen in Hood Canal and the problem of Oregon coastal erosion.

In 2005, 10 signatory parties activated the agreement. At that time, Dr. Jan Newton became its Executive Director. All signatories established the Governing Council with each signatory entitled to assign a member to serve on the Council.

In 2006, the NANOOS Governing Council held its first election for four officers and four standing committee chairs. You can check out the names and contact information under People. NANOOS is eager to hear from all those who have an interest in the ocean environment ... which is just about everyone!

Take a look, too, at the original documents that date back to when NANOOS was a prototype project and forming alliances with all of its constituencies.

In 2008, NANOOS grew to include over 30 signatories, members representing the interests of all the different regions and sectors: industry, government (tribal, state, local) education, and research. NANOOS and all of its users are benefiting from these members' commitment to furthering the scientific and operational design and maintenance of the Pacific Northwest regional ocean observing system.