Forecasting and observing the open-to-coastal ocean for Copernicus users

The main ambition of FOCCUS is to improve and advance the coastal dimension of the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) by enhancing existing capability, developing innovative coastal products. Designing and demonstrating the integration of Copernicus and Member State coastal services will allow a seamless and fit-for-use monitoring and forecasting of the ocean from global to regional and coastal scales. Co-production of coastal services will reinforce the quality, efficiency and exploitation of Copernicus research and specific applications will demonstrate FOCCUS’s progress beyond the state of the art for challenges such as the protection of the coastal zone, the development of a sustainable blue economy, and the building of coastal zone resilience to climate change, anthropogenic pressures and natural hazards. At the heart of the proposed methodology is the use of new space (such as Sentinels) and in-situ coastal observations, innovations in data fusion, data processing and visualisation together with seamless numerical coastal prediction (including interfaces for downscaling from CMEMS) from the regional to the near-shore, also connecting to the estuarine scale. Novel approaches will be used to ensure CMEMS evolves at the forefront of modern research and technology, in-line with the innovation and digitalisation required for the European digital ocean and water knowledge system. FOCCUS will ensure credible pathways for effective uptake and exploitation of key outcomes and research results by the CMEMS and the wider user community, thereby fostering the acceptance and efficient application of novel information products by society. This will include demonstrations of the technical readiness of the proposed evolutions and active dialogue with European and international initiatives to ensure the global community is aware of FOCCUS, and that results contribute to wider efforts.