The Journal of Physical Oceanography (JPO) has a new team of editors. Peter Muller has stepped down after serving as an editor since 1997, and as chief editor since 1999. On behalf of the American Meteorological Society (AMS) and the physical oceanography community, I thank him for his many years of dedicated service. He has given freely of his time and energy, and his expertise, professionalism, and hard work contributed greatly to the quality and reputation of the journal. I will be taking over as chief editor starting 1 January 2009. I also welcome Eric Kunze, professor at the University of Victoria, as a new editor. He will handle submissions related to mesoscale and microscale physical oceanography, particularly processes leading to mixing.
The primary subject areas of the other editors remain as follows: Dr. J. Barth: coastal oceanography, mesoscale processes, interdisciplinary (biology and/or geochemistry); Dr. E. Firing: low- and high-latitude oceanography and currents; Dr. J. Smith: surface waves, air–sea interaction, surface mixed layers; Dr. M. Spall: large- and mesoscale theory and numerical modeling; and Dr. L. Talley: midlatitude oceanography and water masses. These descriptions of the areas of editorial responsibility are available on the inside cover of each JPO issue or on the AMS JPO Web page.
Starting in January, all submissions to JPO will go first to the chief editor to be distributed to the appropriate field editor. This is in keeping with all other AMS journals. It will allow for a more balanced work load for all editors and will help ensure that the appropriate editor is responsible for each submission. The top priority of the editorial board is to assure that JPO publishes high-quality manuscripts in an efficient and timely manner. Please let me know of any specific problems that you encounter in the review process and of any suggestions that you have for its improvement.
