The AIR Centre’s Executive Director, Miguel Miranda, participated in the International Conference on Sustainable Fishing and Aquaculture (CIPAS 2025) in Luanda, Angola, showcasing the application of Copernicus Earth Observation data to enhance ocean monitoring and support fisheries operations in Angolan waters.
Organized by Angola’s Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources under the theme “Responsible Fishing and Sustainable Aquaculture: A Challenge, a Commitment, a Mission Uniting the Nation,” the two-day conference brought together national and international experts to foster dialogue on sustainable fisheries.
On November 5, Miguel Miranda presented “Integration of Copernicus Data into the INIPM Portal: Supporting Ocean Monitoring and Fisheries Operations” as part of the Science, Data and Ocean Monitoring panel. His presentation highlighted the AIR Centre’s collaboration with Angola’s National Institute of Fisheries and Marine Research (INIPM) to enhance ocean observation capabilities using advanced satellite data. He also promoted the sea state forecasting service supported by the AIR Centre, which provides real-time data on significant wave height, peak period, currents, temperature, salinity, and elevation for Angola’s coastal waters – essential parameters for safe and efficient fisheries operations. This service is now fully accessible via INIPM’s official portal.
By integrating Copernicus data into local monitoring systems, the AIR Centre is supporting Angola in strengthening its capacity for evidence-based fisheries management and ocean surveillance, bridging Earth Observation technology with practical applications for ocean sustainability.
The conference was opened by José de Lima Massano, Minister of State for Economic Coordination, who emphasized Angola’s commitment to the National Development Programme 2023-2027 and the National Strategy for the Sea of Angola 2030, aligning with the United Nations 2030 Agenda and the African Integrated Maritime Strategy 2050.
The AIR Centre’s participation in CIPAS 2025 reinforces its commitment to supporting sustainable ocean management and fostering international collaboration in marine science across the Atlantic basin.
Summer@LSTS 2020 – Session #6 with Gerard Dooly (University of Limerick)
Summer@LSTS 2020 continued on August 27th, 2020, 1:00-2:00 PM UTC, with Gerard Dooly, who will present Autonomous Control & Inspection Capabilities for Complex Sites. Operation of remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) in the commercial sector are generally undertaken through manual control with significant dependence on pilot skill and with video feedback from onboard camera systems. These systems and mode of operation was developed for the oil & gas industries and may not be fully suited other applications such as offshore wind and other difficult environments. The progression towards more autonomy in the ROV sector offers larger operational windows as well as other safety and cost benefits. The University of Limerick has developed autonomous systems to address this technical gap and presents solutions though interfaces onto a commercial light work-class ROV, the MRE-ROV. This talk centers around the first year of operations for the UL MRE-ROV and discusses the technological developments ongoing within the UL research lab. The discussion also centers on technologies for resident robotics systems such as autonomous intervention, live 3D reconstructions, autonomous docking and advanced imaging systems. Test results are from ship based operations off the Irish coast on a number of sites varying from Shipwreck to Coral Grounds and Oil & Gas infrastructure.
II International Forum on the Environment and Blue Economy
Networking Friday Special Thematic Session on Evolving and Sustaining Ocean Best Practices
Continuing with the Networking Fridays Webinar series, on August 28th, 1-3 PM UTC we will hold our 3rd 2-hour long Thematic Special Session. This session will discuss the Ocean Best Practices System. Best practices are created by the community for the community. The Ocean Best Practices System under the auspices of the IOC will support the end-to-end best practices value chain. The oceans play a key role in global issues such as sustainability. As we move toward basin-scale ocean-observing, efficient and consistent monitoring and predicting of the planet’s ocean is essential. These need common methods for interoperability and reproducibility. The Ocean Best Practice System provide publication, discovery and access to relevant and tested methods, from observation to application, as well as a foundation for increasing capacity. It supports the entire ocean community in sharing methods, developing best practices and capacity development in their use.