AA-COASTNET

All Atlantic COASTal observing and technology NETwork

The AA-COASTNET AANChOR Joint Action will establish a network dedicated to Marine Coastal Observation with countries bordering the Atlantic Ocean.

The Network

Brazil

  • SIMCosta: Brazilian Coastal Monitoring System
  • PNBoia: The National Buoy Program
  • MePro initiative: Best Practices in Ocean Observations

Argentina

  • EMAC low-cost buoys and stations monitoring network

South Africa

  • SMCRI: Shallow Marine and Coastal Research Infrastructure
  • SAIAB: South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity

West Africa

  • PROPAO: Coastal sea Surface temperature network

Cabo Verde

  • CVOO: Cabo Verde Ocean Observatory
  • OSCM infrastructure: Ocean Science Center of Mindelo

Europe

  • JERICO-RI: Joint European Research Infrastructure for Coastal Observations

Advisory entities

Main Objectives

  • Best practises: platform operations and metrology;
  • Technology: Needs and Gaps;
  • Data: format, banking and data access;
  • Country initiatives and needs that could be linked to EOOS Techno Forum, ACT US, UN Ocean Decade Costal predict;
  • Transnational Access and Virtual Access;
  • Training activities → Metrology, Platform operation, Inter-comparison of existing sensors, Easy access sensors development, etc.;
  • Prospective for a long term transatlantic coastal network addressing science topics as for example the land sea continuum.

Tasks

  • Task 1: AA-COASTNET workshop
  • Task 2: AA-COASTNET Trainings
  • Task 3: Website – All Atlantic Coastal Observation
  • Task 4: Prospective for a long term transatlantic coastal network

Long term objectives

  • promote a better scientific knowledge about the links and exchanges between offshore and inshore/coastal regions;
  • to connect, align and maximize the coastal observation efforts already existing in both edges of the tropical and southern Atlantic;
  • inducing the use common guidelines that lead to the improvement of the best observation practices;
  • keep a close link with open ocean observing networks in the All Atlantic basin;
  • promote cooperation and ship-time/equipment sharing, once ships necessarily cross shelf break-shelf-coastal areas;
  • to encourage and identify new sources of funds for its maintenance, especially those made available in calls for proposals from international and trans-national funding agencies;
  • contributing to the «Predicting Global Coastal Ocean: Toward a More Resilient Society» as proposed for the United Nations Decade;
  • to follow the UN Ocean Decade implementation plan and to apply for endorsement by the UN Ocean Decade.