AQUARIUS-RI’s Post

🌊 The AQUARIUS kick-off meeting comes to an end, but the project is just beginning! Over the last two days the 45 partners came together virtually to plan the next steps, share ideas and get to know each other. We heard about: ✅ The fantastic diversity of the 57 research infrastructures that will be made available via free-for-use transnational calls for access, from drones to research vessels, and from ROVs to airplanes; ✅ The many training opportunities for users of the research infrastructures to best practices in data management, and from floating universities and glider schools; ✅ The great diversity of experience and knowledge spanning the partners in this consortium. ✅ How, ultimately, AQUARIUS will contribute data, information, and knowledge to support the goals of the Mission Restore our Oceans and Waters. ⏰ The first of two calls for free-for-use transnational access will open for applications in November 2024. Over the coming weeks and months we will be rolling out more information on these resources and opportunities. So stay tuned! Subscribe to our Newsletter https://lnkd.in/euHeWKhN #EUGreenDeal #Ocean #FreshWater #Science #Research #CallsforAccess Horizon Europe Marine Institute Seascape Belgium Finnish Meteorological Institute on Telegram by GRT : Ilmatieteen laitos [Meteo WWF Suomi / Finland] CSIC Hellenic Centre for Marine Research Institute of Marine Research (IMR), Norway Grønlands Naturinstitut Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research University of Limerick National Institute for Marine Research and Development "Grigore Antipa" MARIS B.V. Finnish Environment Institute (Syke) - Suomen ympäristökeskus (Syke) Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche CzechGlobe NIVA - Algal Future Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique VLIZ - Flanders Marine Institute EMBRC - European Marine Biological Resource Centre-ERIC Sorbonne Université Centro de Ciencias do Mar (CCMAR) DO ALGARVE Mercator Ocean International EMBL European Molecular Biology Laboratory SMHI INSTITUT DE RECHERCHE POUR LE DEVELOPPEMENT University of Liège Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia Instituto Hidrográfico - Marinha Portuguesa Horizon Europe #EUResearch European Research Executive Agency (REA)

1️⃣ The first AQUARIUS Funding Call for Transnational Access to Research Infrastructures is open and ready for applications! 🔗https://lnkd.in/e9R5Rkxn ➡️ Apply from now until midnight on the 20th of January 2025! The Regional Lighthouse Access Call is seeking applications that address scientific challenges in the EU lighthouse regions (Atlantic-Arctic, Danube River, Mediterranean Sea, Baltic and North Sea). ➡️ Visit: https://lnkd.in/eQnWxaa7 AQUARIUS offers nine diverse types of research infrastructures that you can choose from and integrate into a winning proposal: 1) Research Vessels 2) Marine Mobile Observation Platforms 3) Fixed Marine Facilities 4) Experimental Research Facilities 5) River & Basin Supersites 6) Aircraft 7) Drones 8) Satellite Services 9) Data Centres & Virtual Labs ➡️ For more information on the AQUARIUS research infrastructures visit our catalogue https://lnkd.in/eVk93u5G. 📢 Proposals must be submitted exclusively via the AQUARIUS Transnational Access Platform (TAP), available via https://lnkd.in/eQnWxaa7. Proposal submission involves the steps outlined below 1) Register on the AQUARIUS TAP and activate your account. 2) Contact the operators of the RI to which you are requesting access to find out whether your proposal can be implemented in the RI as planned. 3) Fill in the TA application form in the TAP 4) Review and submit your application. We recommend you read the application guidelines here for a detailed explanation https://lnkd.in/e_Vsw6Ps 📹https://lnkd.in/eJ65f5GA #Marine #AQUARIUS #Research #FundingCall #EU

That’s a lot of work squeezed into 33 seconds 😮💨 Last week, our Marine Technology and Autonomy team, led by Prof James Fishwick, embarked on the Trinity House Vessel Patricia to service the E1 buoy alongside our colleagues from Met Office. Find out more: https://lnkd.in/g_UJX3r7 The E1 scientific buoy - located 20 nautical miles off Plymouth - is a collaboration between PML and the UK Met Office, combining meteorological and oceanographical expertise to deliver a state-of-the-art multi-user platform, autonomously collecting atmospheric and in-water measurements in situ. The buoy is a key asset of the #WesternChannelObservatory (#WCO), an oceanographic #TimeSeries and marine biodiversity reference site in the #WesternEnglishChannel - and the longest #MarineDataset in the world. The E1 buoy serves as a cornerstone of the WCO, with over a century of data collected from this station. PML first deployed a buoy here in 2008 and, since 2012, began a collaboration with the Met Office, to integrate their instrumentation for meteorological measurements alongside PML’s sensors for oceanographic measurements. #DidYouKnow: data from the E1 buoy and the Western Channel Observatory is open access? #autonomy #marineautonomy #marinescience #marinebiology #oceanography #data

💧🌎 Australia’s AquaWatch system breaks ground in the UK! CSIRO, along with foundational partner Lot Fourteen’s SmartSat CRC and a network of collaborators, will establish a ‘weather service’ for water quality in the UK. ⛅ 🌊 AquaWatch, a world-first ground-to-space water quality monitoring system, has set up various test sites to monitor different aquatic environments since its inception, such as bays, wetlands, rivers, lakes, and coral reefs. 🐠 💦 Now, AquaWatch is expanding its reach to the UK with the establishment of AquaWatch UK, marking the first time the initiative will be implemented on a national scale by another country. The project is supported by the UK Space Agency’s International Bilateral Fund, with additional funding from the Australian Space Agency, as part of the ongoing UK-Australia Space Bridge initiative. 🌌 🛰️ Projects like AquaWatch showcase the role of space technology in tackling global challenges through collaboration. 🤝 🌍 📷 Satellite image of a phytoplankton bloom in the English Channel near Plymouth. ©European Union, Copernicus Sentinel-2 #AquaWatch #SpaceTechnology #EarthObservation #Collaboration #SpaceIndustry #InnovationDistrict

⚠ Important News for the European Space Agency - ESA #BIOSPACE25 conference👇: 🔖the abstract and workshop proposal submission deadline has been extended until 03 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 2024! If you plan to participate with your contribution(s), please follow the instructions at https://lnkd.in/dypJWWY4. #BIOSPACE25 is the first international conference exclusively dedicated to the application of 𝐒𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 (𝐒𝐑𝐒) across the various dimensions of biodiversity, and addressing the use of Earth Observations in all realms, from terrestrial, freshwater, and coastal to marine ecosystems. The event will take place at the European Space Agency - ESA-ESRIN, Frascati, Italy from 10 𝐭𝐨 14 𝐅𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐲 2025 and it is co-organised with estimated partners such as the European Commission, the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network  GEO BON, CEOS (Committee on Earth Observation Satellites) in collaboration with a number of partner organisations.   More information on the conference structure is available at https://lnkd.in/d-P6TWJt! #Ecosystem #Genetic #Diversity #Space #Phylogeny #Biogeography #Habitat #Mapping #Landscape #ClimateChange #Urban #Marine #FreshWater #Wetland #Forest #Mountain #CitizenScience #RemoteSensing #BiodiversityFinance Marc Paganini Federica Marando Giuseppe Ottavianelli Nikolina Mileva Agata Elia Ulla Vayrynen Sabrina Lodadio

Creating value in #space European Space Agency - ESA meets e.Ray Europa GmbH The European Space Agency - ESA Business Applications Program is driving space applications in many sectors of the economy Flood warning, organic cotton cultivation control, irrigation of urban green spaces, monitoring of methane storage, planning and status of weather-dependent hiking trails. What does all this has to do with space travel? Quite a lot! Space travel is a fundamental component of all these services. Space technologies can be used to precisely monitor various environmental conditions in all areas. The information obtained in this way helps to detect weather effects and environmental disasters at an early stage, track supply chains, conserve resources or avoid hazards for hikers. The technology for obtaining the necessary information is not new. Space services such as satellite-based earth observation and satellite communication have long been established. What is innovative is how these technologies and services are used and create value in sectors of the economy that have not yet benefited from space travel. The services mentioned are examples of commercial innovations that have been funded by the European Space Agency ESA's Business Applications (BA) program. Since 2024, the ESA BA program has also been involved in the #INNOspace Masters competition with its own challenge. The best three ideas can be funded with up to EUR 225,000. Project #SWIM by e.Ray Europa GmbH The condition of our waters is becoming increasingly worse. Inputs from intensive land use are leading to more and more #algae #blooms, which pose a threat to humans and animals. On the other hand, #floods are becoming more frequent and more extreme. The start-up e.Ray from #Darmstadt is developing a #water management system for catchment areas under the patented name #SWIM (Surface Water Information Management). This combines data from satellite-based earth observation with precise local determination (navigation) and on-site measurements. This application serves as the basis for evaluating measures and monitoring of our most important resource. Bringing together all relevant information enables the relevant decision-makers to react quickly to potential dangers in emergencies. This could have provided valuable assistance during the #Ahrtal flood disaster in 2021. www.e-Ray.eu

In about a month the European environmental 🛰️satellite Sentinel-2C will be launched into space from Europe's spaceport in Kourou 🌴 Once in space the satellite's solar arrays will be aligned towards the Sun 🌞 with our drive mechanisms. Launch date is scheduled for Sep 4 (CEST). The satellite will deliver data about for example agriculture, forestry or natural disasters (floods, forest fires, landslides, volcanic eruptions, and erosion). Sentinel-2C is a European Space Agency - ESA satellite within Copernicus ECMWF, the Earth Observation component of the EU Space program, managed by the European Commission in partnership with ESA. More about our solar array drive mechanisms 👉 https://lnkd.in/ex-8xav4 More about the launch preparations of Sentinel-2C including picture from a jungle boat tour :-) 👉 https://lnkd.in/dnry5jey Image credit: ESA, Airbus, Arianespace, CNES, EU

#MangroveDay #Mangroves are highly productive ecosystems that provide multiple ecological services: carbon storage, biodiversity, habitat for aquatic species, and cultural identity and ties for local communities. Despite the multiple ecological services provided by mangrove forests, they are under constant threat. At SERVIR-Amazonia we have developed two essential tools to contribute to the management of these ecosystems and decision-making. 🌱 Guyana Mangrove Information System (GuyMIS): A web application that allows interaction with data on the extent, changes and restoration of mangroves in Guyana. www.mangroves.gov.gy 🌊 MANGLEE: A tool developed in Google Earth Engine, which offers accessible monitoring of the state of #mangroves and their threats in Ecuador, supporting informed decision-making for their preservation. https://rb.gy/qpz1t1 National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (#NAREI) of #Guyana | USAID | NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration | Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT | SERVIR Global

Yachts for Science 🌟 Exciting Partnership Announcement! 🌟 Secret Atlas is thrilled to announce our collaboration with Dr Paige Maroni @deepseauwa and Yachts For Science on an innovative pilot study aboard the Freya. This groundbreaking initiative aims to deepen our understanding of polar ecosystems, a crucial step in safeguarding Arctic biodiversity. During two Expedition Micro-Cruises, Dr. Maroni successfully deployed advanced technology, including a Baited Remote Underwater Vehicle and a Remotely Operated Vehicle, to explore marine organisms and the delicate benthic structures beneath Svalbard’s waters. This marks Secret Atlas’s first scientific expedition and sets the stage for a long-term research program focused on monitoring marine health in Svalbard’s ocean and fjord environments. Dr. Maroni’s work is pivotal in uncovering new marine species and examining unique benthic structures, addressing the critical gap in literature due to logistical and environmental challenges in remote research areas. Secret Atlas is proud to contribute to this essential conservation effort and looks forward to advancing scientific research in the Arctic and Antarctic regions. #MarineResearch #ArcticExploration #Conservation #ScientificResearch #secretatlas #yachtsforscience #expedition #microcruise #arctic #ROV #ROVpilots #BRUV #uwa #marinescience #polar Sofar Ocean

🤷♀️ What is around the corner for coastal erosion monitoring and planning? 🚨 #Coastal planning and #erosion forecasting 📈 require accurate waterline position along with all environmental conditions (tide level, wind waves, etc.) 🌊 However a lot of countries do not have historical records. This new grant allow us to investigate #EO methods to extract coastal conditions.