The annual meeting of the GEORGE EU project, jointly organized by ICOS ERIC and EMSO ERIC, took place in Rome on November 19-21. During the meeting, Simo Cusi, EMSO ERIC Engineering and Logistics Officer, presented the latest advancements in technology and deployments within the project.

His presentation focused on WP5 – Implementation and Demonstration, the Work Package led by EMSO ERIC with aim to:

  • Design and implement a process for the validation of technologies and their TRL progression
  • Define validation requirements and stage-gates for TRL progression of each technology developed through GEORGE
  • Coordinate sea trials for the validation and demonstration of technologies
  • Evaluate technological developments for integration into the ERIC observing infrastructure

Here are the key highlights from the presentation:

– The recent first deployment from the G.O. Sars R/V of the EMSO Generic Instrument Module (EGIM) in the Norwegian Sea within the project! The EGIM system, upgraded and equipped with a 4H Jena CONTROS HydroC CO2 sensor to measure carbon dioxide, is currently being tested in deep water at the EMSO Nordic Seas Regional Facility, station M site, at a depth of 2000 m to evaluate its performance in the deep-sea environment. 

 – Progress of the working group for engineering validation and deployment plans: more than 25 new technologies identified by the project partners for further development and 8 experiments planned to test the new technologies in various locations, from the North Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea, as detailed in the Deliverable 5.1 – Technology validation and prototyping SOP and trials project plan.

What’s next in the WP5? 

– The upgraded EGIM being tested in the Norwegian Sea will be recovered in January 2025 and further tested with a new landing system and a 4H Jena CONTROS HydroC CH4 sensor for a more extended period at a deep-sea site between the Norwegian and Greenland Seas at 3000 m of depth.

– Upgrading of Ships of Opportunity (SOOP) Finnmaid (Baltic Sea) and Atlantic Sail (North Atlantic) with new 4H Jena sensors.

-Analysis of data coming from the above tests toward Deliverable 5.2 – Report describing data acquired from each field trial.

-Continue planning the multi RI demo missions at PAP Site and North Western Mediterranean

About the annual GEORGE meeting: 

The GEORGE annual meeting served as a valuable platform for partners to exchange information, strengthen collaboration, and foster innovation. In addition to the main updates provided by the Work Package leaders, many interactive sections have been organized, among which:

  • a workshop on exploitation of project results to gather input from all the GEORGE partners for the upcoming project deliverable D7.3: Updated dissemination, communication, and exploitation plan;
  • a visit to WSense, a high-tech company specialised in underwater monitoring and communication systems, which is partner of GEORGE project 
  • a visit to the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV), partner of the project and representing entity of the Italian scientific community of marine science distributed over different Italian Research Institutions in EMSO ERIC.

 

 

Picture 1: Simo Cusi, EMSO ERIC Engineer and Logistics Officer, presenting WP5 progress at the project’s annual meeting

Picture 2: Visit of GEORGE participants to INGV seismic surveillance room in Rome. Credit: INGV