SEA-EU DAYS: Oceanographic Campaign and Open Forum

Published 12 May, 2022

A great celebration for people in Cádiz. 2 days of visits, exhibitions and activities to learn more about the OCEANOGRAF and its expedition from Gdansk to Cadiz. Also, the SEA-EU DAY, with an online Forum and Open Table was the closure for these DAYS. Click to see more about it.

During the 17th and 18th of June, more than 1200 people had the opportunity to visit the R/V Oceanograf and enjoy an exhibition with 29 panels about the SEA-EU Alliance, the ship and its expedition, the importance of ocean sustainability and the Coast for Kids project, with which hundreds of children had fun learning.

Families, university staff, students, children and adults got to know SEA-EU and its objectives better in these open days organised by the SEA-EU Delegation at the University of Cadiz with the support of one of its associated members, the Port of Cadiz, which offered its facilities.

A celebration of these 3 years. An open session to share the main results and to share experiences with other Alliances. Click for more

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The University of Gdańsk ship R / V Oceanograf has set off for Spain

Gdańsk – Kiel – Brest – Cadiz is the route of the research cruise organized by SEA-EU. University of Gdańsk ship – R / V Oceanograf – left the port on May 26 at 1.00 p.m. The trip will last 23 days, during which around 100 scientists from SEA-EU, an alliance of six European coastal universities, will conduct five one-day research cruises and three complex projects. The ship was bid farewell by Rector of the University of Gdańsk, prof. Piotr Stepnowski.

The cruise aims to compare the characteristics of different areas along the west coast of Europe. Among the factors studied are air quality, gas accumulation and level of microplastics. – On such a scale, this type of research has not yet been carried out, so our results will be unique – said the coordinator of the scientific committee of the cruise, prof. Adam Sokołowski from University of Gdańsk.

The next stop is Kiel, where the research team from Christian Albrecht University will board the ship. R / V Oceanograf is the most advanced research unit of its type in Europe, so sharing its potential with other universities opens up a lot of opportunities. The catamaran has six rooms for researchers and equipment that allows for a thorough examination of the seabed.

“Oceanograf” will moor in Cadiz on June 17, and five days later it will begin its voyage home to Gdynia. The entire route is 4,000 nautical miles, and the ship will deployed for 39 days.

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We are off soon!

The ‘European University of the Seas’ (SEA-EU) alliance was officially launched in October 2019, as part of the flagship ‘European University’ Initiative of the European Commission, to renew the vision of universities’ role as key leaders and shapers of Europe’s future. As the alliance of six European and coastal universities from Cadiz, Brest, Kiel, Gdańsk, Split and Malta, we share an integrated, long-term strategy for education, committed to outstanding education and research. SEA-EU will engage in common efforts to build an inclusive, sustainable and resilient future for people and the planet, with the specific vocation for the sea that unites us.

The joint SEA-EU Alliance research cruise 2022 was initiated by the Rector of the University of Gdańsk, Prof. Piotr Stepnowski, to promote activities of the alliance and to strengthen scientific collaboration of the partner institutions. The cruise aims at combining international expertise of the partners to study important environmental issues at a pan-European scale. The cruise will be conducted onboard research vessel r/v Oceanograf that is owned by University of Gdańsk. The vessel offers high-quality navigation and research equipment, and modern laboratory and storage space for interdisciplinary studies at sea.

Out of 17 individual research proposals, three projects have been agreed upon by the consortium to be implemented during the cruise from Gdańsk to Cadiz:

Accumulation of shallow gas in the continental shelf sediments – interdisciplinary approach
Air quality in the European coastal areas
Large-scale comparative studies of microplastics in European coastal waters

For each project, an international research team including scientists from all SEA-EU partners have been created to develop joint and cost-effective research programmes. The teams are composed of renowned and experienced scientists as well as early-career researchers of complementary competence and knowledge which ensures achieving the scientific goals. The projects consist of at sea works (collection of samples and in-situ measurements) and post-cruise analyses of the sampled material and processing of the recorded data.