Gray literature is the information created by organizations such as government agencies, professional associations, research institutes, and think tanks that are not published in scholarly journals or books. This includes:
Gray literature is produced by researchers and practitioners in a field and is an important component of a thorough literature review due to its depth and breadth, timeliness, flexibility, and open access.
The NOAA Central Library is to support and further NOAA’s mission of promoting global environmental stewardship in order to conserve and wisely manage the Nation's marine and coastal resources; and describing, monitoring, and predicting changes in the Earth's environment in order to ensure and enhance sustainable economic opportunities.