EUSCOMvu

Context

Coastal hydrodynamic modelling aims to understand and predict water circulation generated by winds, tides and freshwater discharges. This circulation is greatly affected by the bathymetry and geomorphological characteristics of the coast. Accurate coastal models are essential to correctly evaluate and predict the risks of adverse events on human life, activities and infrastructures.

Objectives

Consequently, EUSCOMvu aims to:

• generate a highly optimized oceanic and coastal operational forecast in the Basque Country waters.
• implement an online validation capability to assess the performance of the forecast and compare it with the Copernicus Marine products.
• foster a close cooperation for operational ocean currents data interchanges with the Spanish Maritime Security and Rescue Society (SASEMAR) and defining novel hydrological indicators with the Basque Water Agency (URA).

All these objectives will contribute to set the basis for a seamless downstream marine coastal forecasting service in the SE Bay of Biscay and to increase/consolidate the use of Copernicus Marine data.

Use cases

In this project, the validated surface currents generated by EUSCOMvu will be integrated in the Environmental Data Server maintained by SASEMAR and used in support of its activities. URA will be engaged to define and agree on tailored physical hydrographical metrics and their associated accuracy requirements for complementing the current in-situ coastal monitoring network and provide better insight of hydrography indicators and assessments reported under the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) directives.

Expected result

The main goal is to provide a highly reliable and transparent coastal operational forecasting service in the Basque Country waters, which will support coastal managers and marine public administrations in their activities and obligations.