The European Digital Twin Ocean builds on artificial intelligence and satellite technology to create a virtual replica of the ocean for scientists and policymakers. How does it work?
“The ocean is in deep trouble — and we are pushing it past its limits,” United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres said on Monday (8 June).
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Guterres' remarks came on the occasion of World Oceans Day and the UN's release of the third World Ocean Assessment.
According to the report, sea levels continue to rise at an increasing rate; approximately 16% of the increase in global ocean heat since 1955 occurred after 2018; and the amount of Arctic sea ice continues to decrease.
But amid this dire situation, can technology help us protect our oceans?
Euronews Tech Talks interviewed Alain Arnaud, director of the digital ocean programme at the French organisation Mercator Ocean International (Mercator), to understand how artificial intelligence (AI) and satellites can contribute to ocean monitoring.
What is the European Digital Twin Ocean?
Mercator’s flagship product is the European Digital Twin Ocean (EDITO), a virtual replica of the ocean, accessible online and free of charge.
First presented in 2022 by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, EDITO is a European Union (EU) initiative led by Mercator and the Flanders Marine Institute.
The platform is built on interactive world maps and allows its users to investigate various aspects of the ocean, from sea temperature to plastic pollution.
“It’s a very high-resolution model that encompasses information on the state of the ocean, including also different waves, currents, salinity, temperature, and information also on the biology of the sea,” Arnaud told Euronews Next.
On June 3, the EDITO was included in OceanEye, an EU plan to advance ocean monitoring and it is set to become fully operational by 2030.
How can AI help ocean monitoring?
One of EDITO’s key features is its ability to let users explore “what if” scenarios, enabling them to assess how changes impact the ocean.
For instance, users can examine how fish populations might change if sea temperatures increase by 2 degrees or whether seagrass could reduce erosion in specific marine areas.
And this is possible thanks to AI. “With the AI-based model, we can change the initial condition of the ocean,” Arnaud explained.
In addition to this application, EDITO also proposes an AI chatbot for its users who have questions about the ocean.
EDITO’s AI chatbot was presented to the public during the Digital Ocean Week held in Brussels this week.
Arnaud explained that for now, the AI chatbot is only available on EDITO, but that Mercator is discussing whether to collaborate with major AI companies like ChatGPT to get reliable ocean information to a wider audience.
“It [AI] is going so fast, so fast that it's really frightening, but we need to be ready to adapt,” Arnaud said.
How can satellites help ocean monitoring?
Earth observation satellites are also essential to ocean monitoring and the EDITO project.
“What we are doing currently is mainly to use data coming from European satellites,” Arnaud explained. “But we can also integrate data coming from collaboration with the United States or India, or we have some information coming from Japan, for instance,” he added.
Copernicus, the Earth observation component of the European Union’s space programme, is a key tool for EDITO, as the project relies mostly on data coming from European satellites.
Specifically, Copernicus provides information on the state of the ocean in terms of surface, while more specific in-situ information comes from boats across the globe.
EDITO is a tool designed for scientists and policymakers, but it aims to be more integrated with the European Maritime Security Agency to contribute to maritime security and not only ocean knowledge.
