22 March: World Water Day – HaDEA successful projects show their innovative water solutions

Held annually on 22 March, World Water Day aims to inspire action to tackle the global water crisis. HaDEA is managing a variety of EU-funded projects that are fostering water-related innovations. 

CALLISTO – Copernicus AI services and data fusion with other distributed data sources and processing at the edge to support DIAS and HPC infrastructures [Horizon 2020]

CALLISTO aimed to bridge the gap between Copernicus Data and Information Access Services (DIAS) providers and application end users through dedicated AI solutions. It provided an interoperable Big Data platform integrating Earth Observation data with crowdsourced and geo-referenced data and observations from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). The CALLISTO platform was used to implement a pilot case for innovative water quality monitoring in Belgium. This initiative is showcased in a video taken during the pilot demonstration.

FOCCUS - Forecasting and observing the open-to-coastal ocean for Copernicus users [Horizon Europe]

FOCCUS is working to advance the coastal dimension of the Copernicus Marine Service by enhancing its existing capability and developing innovative coastal monitoring and forecasting products. The project will provide new tools to better address challenges such as the protection of coastal zones, the development of sustainable blue economies and the building of coastal zones’ resilience to climate change, anthropogenic pressures, and natural hazards.

GREENER - Single Photon source and detector based on novel materials for the detection of endocrine disruptors [Horizon Europe]

GREENER is helping water monitoring by developing new compact spectrometer technology that can measure extremely low concentrations of contaminants in water. This marks the first time that an electrically pumped, quantum dot based single photon source, which operates at room temperature, has been applied to spectral sensing.

NECCTON - New Copernicus capability for trophic ocean networks [Horizon Europe]

NECCTON is transforming Europe’s capability to predict and protect the biodiversity of marine ecosystems. Through the introduction of new ‘green ocean’ modelling products, it will enable the Copernicus Marine Service to better inform ocean policymakers and the public about biodiversity conservation and fisheries management.

NextOcean - Next Generation of fishing and aquaculture services [Horizon 2020]

NextOcean successfully produced six innovative services for sustainable fisheries and aquaculture, delivered via a tailored service platform. Leveraging on Copernicus data, the platform empowers aquaculture operators, fisheries stakeholders, and regulatory authorities with actionable insights and data-driven solutions for the effective management and sustainable utilisation of marine resources.

Water-ForCE – Defining the future of inland water services for Copernicus [Horizon 2020]

Water-ForCE has developed a user- and stakeholder-driven Roadmap for Copernicus Water Services. The roadmap includes an assessment of emerging user needs and opportunities presented by satellite and in-situ sensors, as well as a gap analysis of the Copernicus water-related services portfolio. Moreover, it presents actionable recommendations to maximise the benefits of the water-related services.

WQeMS – Copernicus assisted lake water quality emergency monitoring service [Horizon 2020]

WQeMS produced a modular and adaptable service to monitor water reservoirs, relying on data from Copernicus, the EU’s Earth Observation Programme. The platform enables quality monitoring of lakes valorised for the delivery of drinking water, following validated processes with in-situ data. It can be used to monitor a variety of key variables, such as flood events, harmful algae bloom, mudflows, and oil spills. Discover all project results in this CORDIS article.

Background

EU Space Research aims to foster a cost-effective, competitive, and innovative space industry and research community. Under Horizon Europe Cluster 4 – Space (Destination 5), HaDEA is funding projects that prepare future evolutions of the EU Space Programme components, foster the EU space sector’s competitiveness, reinforce its independent capacity to access space, and secure its autonomy of supply for critical technologies.

Horizon 2020 the EU’s multiannual funding programme between 2014 and 2020. H2020 provided Research and Innovation (R&I) funding for multi-national collaboration projects alongside individual researchers and SMEs via special funding instruments. Horizon 2020 is succeeded by Horizon Europe Programme, which will run until 2027.

Relevant links

EU Space Research

EU Space Programme - Copernicus

Horizon Europe Industry