MARINE INSTITUTE ENTERS MOU AGREEMENT

Marine Institute enters MoU agreement. The Marine Institute and the Portuguese Hydrographic Institute have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) agreement.

The agreement was signed by Dr Peter Heffernan, CEO of the Marine Institute and Rear Admiral Carlos Ventura Soares, Director General of the Portuguese Hydrographic Institute during a visit to the Marine Institute in Oranmore last week.

The MoU aims to promote focused areas of cooperation. This will foster an increased level of understanding and interchange of ideas for the mutual benefit of the Irish and Portuguese marine sectors and to increase collaboration in Atlantic Ocean research.

Michael Gillooly Director of Ocean Science and Information Services at the Marine Institute said, “This agreement will increase our collaborations with Portugal, particularly in the area of data services, mapping, oceanography and monitoring. Through a coordinated approach, and sharing expertise and resources we will be able to further enhance our understanding of our Atlantic Ocean to effectively observe, analyse, model and predict the impacts of our changing oceans.”

As part of the visit, Rear Admiral Soares was given an overview of the range of work carried out by the Marine Institute. Staff shared their knowledge on oceanographic research and observation, such as ocean modelling, the Irish Marine Data Buoy Observation Network and the Institute’s participation in the Euro-Argo programme.

Mr Carlos Ventura Soares also received an outline of the work carried out by the Marine Institute’s two marine research vessels, including the new state-of-the-art research vessel which is anticipated to be completed by 2022. The visit also showcased the data visualisation tools that have been used to support marine spatial planning activity, marine environmental monitoring and sustainable management of Ireland’s fish stocks. There were also discussions on data management and undersea ocean observatory technology.