EMODnet

The European Marine Observation and Data Network (EMODnet) is a centralised gateway of marine data, products and metadata being assembled by more than 160 local, national, regional and international organisations. EMODNet Data Portals provide access to marine data across seven thematic areas: bathymetry, geology, seabed habitats, chemistry, biology, physics, human activities. Physics data include near real-time data on the physical conditions of European seas and oceans which are important to monitor sea level variability, to make predictions on climate change or for the operation and planning of off-shore activities.

Six 'Sea-basin Checkpoints' (North Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Artic, Atlantic, Baltic, Black Sea) were established, to assess the quality of the current observation monitoring data at the level of regional sea-basins. By testing the data against specific end-user challenges, checkpoints aim to demonstrate how well the current monitoring systems and data collection frameworks provide data to meet the needs of users.

Climate change and the related coastal protection/management are common challenges of all Sea-basin Checkpoints. These challenges aim to compute the change of key ocean characteristics such as temperature, internal energy, ice coverage, sea level rise and phytoplankton abundance, to assess whether the current available marine datasets are available and appropriate as well as to indicate gaps in the current EU data collection framework.