NeXOS Project

The "Marine Knowledge 2020" communication of September 2010 showed that improved management of marine observations and data would reduce the cost of operations at sea, stimulate innovation and reduce uncertainty in knowledge of future oceanic conditions.

At present data are held at institutions throughout Europe, making it difficult to find data for a particular parameter in a specific area. Obtaining access and authorisation is problematic, and it is time-consuming to collate heterogenous datasets from different sources to form a coherent picture. Many potential activities cannot obtain funding due to the high costs that must be met by marine operators.

The European GMES/MyOcean programme has now set up a marine service using satellite and in-situ data to provide oceanographic forecasts and the EU's Data Collection Framework has established a process for a structured collection of fisheries data. Many high value services, such as management of fish stocks and the protection of coastal infrastructures, will be provided only by a few organizations unless the accessibility of marine data improves. This situation is non-competitive and inefficient. With improved interoperability, small businesses and young engineers would be able to develop new products and services using a variety of data from different sources. NEXOS will provide the tools to facilitate the task of data managers and managers of observation systems to introduce interoperability principles.