The ICTS SOCIB operates a multi-platform observation system, gathering metocean data from the coast to the open sea, in addition to an ocean forecasting system for waves and meteotsunamis.

ICTS SOCIB Observation Facilities

SOCIB observing system includes surface drifting buoys, profilers, 16 coastal stations installed in different ports and coastal areas of the Balearic Islands, 2 metocean buoys installed in the Ibiza Channel and the Bay of Palma, the SOCIB Research Vessel R/V (length of 24 meters), 2 high-frequency coastal radar stations, 7 gliders and 3 beach monitoring systems.

The importance of ocean observation infrastructures


 

Ocean observation infrastructures, such as ICTS SOCIB, have become especially significant in recent years. They provide continuous, open-access, real-time ocean data to enhance the understanding, prediction, and management of marine and coastal resources in a context of global change. To achieve this, they carry out sustained ocean monitoring 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, responding to a paradigm shift in oceanographic research.

Since the 1980s, oceanography has undergone a radical transformation. Until then, the main means of obtaining ocean data were oceanographic vessels, through long and costly oceanographic campaigns. The data obtained were partial and insufficient to understand the complex processes occurring in the ocean. It was then that ocean observation, thanks to technological advances, changed. From obtaining data from a single platform (oceanographic vessels), oceanographers were able to monitor the ocean permanently using multiple platforms, instruments, and in situ observation technologies, on the coast or from space, through satellites specifically designed for oceanographic research. This is what is now known as multi-platform ocean observation.

 

Multi-platform ocean observation systems play a key role in addressing multiple challenges, such as understanding the state of the ocean and its variability (from small to large scales), facilitating the forecasting of climate scenarios, establishing early warning mechanisms for extreme events, or making coastal adaptation plans, among others. These data are offered from infrastructures like ICTS SOCIB, in open access and real-time, to contribute to advancing the understanding of the ocean and ensuring that this knowledge impacts decision-making, thus promoting evidence-based marine management.

ICTS SOCIB aligns with the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) and the European Global Ocean Observing System (EuroGOOS) to ensure long-term sustained observations in the seas of Europe and guarantee access to data for the benefit of society, science, and innovation.

In situ Ocean Observation Platforms and Networks, July 2023.

Source: Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), Ocean Observing System Report Card 2023