Summer Course e-modules

Welcome to an enlightening e-module that delves into the world of plastic and microplastic pollution research, featuring insights from Dr. Amy Lusher, a Senior Research Scientist at the Norwegian Institute for Water Research. In this program, we explore the critical role of the Global Plastics Treaty in understanding and mitigating plastic pollution from its sources to the sea.

Welcome to an insightful e-module that shines a spotlight on the dynamic field of marine litter research and the role of citizen science in combating litter and plastic pollution. In this program, you’ll discover the passionate individuals and innovative technologies driving this critical endeavor.

Welcome to our comprehensive e-module focusing on oceanography, biogeochemistry, and cutting-edge instruments used to explore the coastal and open oceans. Throughout this program, you’ll gain insights from experts in the field and learn about the innovative technologies that drive scientific research in marine environments.

Join us in an enlightening e-module that delves into the world of marine measurements, underwater sensing, and advanced technologies designed to collect and communicate crucial data from the depths of our oceans. This program explores the innovations and expertise of professionals at Aquatec Group, a pioneering company in this field.

NIVA, CSEM, and CNR have jointly developed a new low-cost microplastic (MP) sensor with semi-autonomous sampling and analysis of microplastic in the range of 1 – 300 µm. This microplastic sampling and detection system operates by filtering microplastic particles from seawater, removing organic material by oxidation, staining the particles with a fluorescent dye and subsequently measuring each particle flowing, one by one, by recording fluorescence signals in several colour channels. The microplastic detector is based on the principle of Nile Red staining introduced by Meas et al. in 2017 and has now been implemented into the microplastic sensor. It is envisaged to install the first sensor system integrated in the FerryBox onboard the cruise ferry M/S Color Fantasy operating on a two-day basis from Oslo to Kiel.

Pumping high volumes of water with the help of a motor through an inline filter is a way to monitor for microplastics. Compared to using nets, the pump may sample large amounts of water which can give an indication of how much microplastics are present. Water collected in such fashion can often be collected at different depths, but we will be collecting samples from between 0.5-1 meter below the surface. The pump is collected with a filtered intake having a maximum cut-off of 3000µm. The inline filter where we collect the sample has a mask width of 50µm or 200µm, giving us the lowest size of detection of 50µm. Due to the high variability of microplastics spatial distribution there is recommended to take multiple replicates when sampling. 3x samples will therefore be collected, each consisting of 1000L filtered water. The sample is collected by gently rinsing the filter into a glass jar with filtered water. When the sample has filtered enough water then the filter is covered up to avoid contamination, then brought to the lab for processing.

Plastic pollution is now considered a global environmental and societal concern. Numerous protocols have been developed to monitor plastic debris, but these are rarely comparable. This is hindering the gathering of knowledge regarding pollution sources, development of monitoring programmes and risk assessments and implementation of mitigation measures. To develop long-term solutions, it is essential to develop harmonised, reliable and reproducible monitoring technologies. While several innovative methods are being developed, due to the intrinsic complexity and heterogeneity of these emerging pollutants, automatic monitoring of plastic pollution remains a difficult task.

This e-module provides a hands-on demonstration of M2M (Machine-to-Machine) systems for managing and visualizing oceanographic data. Here you will gain practical insights into the usage of ERDDAP, ncWms, and GeoServer through a series of exercises focused on data integration and mapping representation. The course will also allow you to enhance your skills in data visualization and analysis for improved decision-making.

Above water radiometry enables remote measurement of the water components, such as phytoplankton, dissolved organic matter or inorganic particles concentrations, from the light coming from the ocean, providing crucial insights on primary production and water quality. The lecture will include theoretical introduction to ocean color, radiometry, remote sensing, calibration, and use of instruments including multispectral and hyperspectral cameras used within Nautilos, as well as specific theory for deployments of radiometric instruments from drones such as flight planification with regulations aspect, maintenance and day-to day running of the drone operations, and data processing using PIX4d.