Scale : Europe 

Dates : 2024 - 2028

Our role : Review of existing in situ data and analysis of missing data, management of new in situ data to be acquired during the project.

Financiers : Horizon Europe project, DG-RTD of the European Commission

Partnerships :

• coordinateur Marine Institute (Irlande)
• 41 partenaires européens 

Link to website :  https://aquarius-ri.eu/

Description :AQUARIUS aims to provide a very complete suite of integrated and appropriate research infrastructures (RIs) to address the challenge of long-term preservation of oceans, seas and freshwater ecosystems. For the first time, various RIs will be pooled to facilitate the work of researchers and key stakeholders focused on the challenges and opportunities posed by marine and freshwater systems. 57 RI services will be aggregated and made available to the community: research vessels, mobile observation platforms, aircraft, UAVs, satellites, sensors, fixed observatories, test sites, experimental facilities and sophisticated data infrastructures.  The project will thus support the development phase of the EU's mission to restore our oceans and waters by 2030, as well as the European Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership (SBEP), the European Green Pact, and international climate initiatives. It also aims to be an essential element in the construction of the European Digital Ocean Twin, and the United Nations Decade of Ocean Sciences. The needs of the scientific community will be met through a proven and transparent system of transnational access calls for projects, implemented via a centralized and intuitive access portal. At Ifremer, the AQUARIUS project will involve the French Oceanographic Fleet in providing access to 2 oceanographic vessels (Thalassa and L'Europe) and the underwater robot HROV Ariane, as well as the IRSI Department for in situ data management.