Data-sharing services to benefit society

Ocean services to society gain in their importance as we strive to intensify the multiple uses of the sea, to cope with the ever-increasing coastal population flows, and to meet the higher and more widespread expectations for better life standards. Social concerns related to the sea demand further integration and merging of marine data and research priorities to enhance their societal and economic potential. There have been significant changes in the way policies, marine resource management, coastal planning and efficient marine operations are perceived and implemented, such as integrated marine policies and spatial planning approaches. Today the quest for environmental security, based on the concepts of sound ocean governance, knowledge sharing and the controlled use of resources, is the enabler of prosperity, sustainability and peace. There is a greater understanding that actions must be based on informed decisions, which requires an integrated approach based on networked management and decision support systems, and the sustained delivery of reliable and routine marine data.

Indeed, the digital era has opened new realms for ocean data delivery. More users are dependent on reliable information deriving from multiple data sources, while non-professional users are increasing in numbers with different demands from those of professional users. As technology further feeds the value addition chain of data to information, knowledge and intelligence, innovative downstream services are evolving to popularise the uptake of data, catering the demand of a knowledge-based society seeking faster and selective access to information. The STREAM project builds on these aspects to provide at fingertips, on-demand, pixel-based data to general users, including the common citizen, via popular smart mass media without requiring data science skills. The main concept in STREAM aligns with the target to popularise data for use and re-use to the benefit of society at large.

STREAM’s intuitive design allows users to seamlessly access data with a simple, personalised “view, select, click, and go” facility, eliminating the need to download large volumes of data. The platform delivers precise data for the chosen location and time window, quickly, free of charge, and in a user-friendly data format. By combining satellite observations with numerical simulations, STREAM offers three key data modes: Before, Now, and Next. Users can access historical and climatological data (spanning 30 years), updated real-time observations, and predictions, all from a single platform. Additional features include the ability to save and revisit selections, receive mobile notifications for user-defined thresholds and locations, and monitor change over selected sites and time slots. These functionalities empower users to assess variations, obtain precise data for assessments, and enable informed decision-making.

The service covers the sea area around the Maltese Islands and the southern Sicilian coast. It can be accessed via the STREAM web platform (www.stream-srf.com) or through the mobile app available for Android (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.stream_srf.app.twa&hl=en) and iOS (https://apps.apple.com/us/app/stream-srf/id6648788013?platform=iphone) devices.

STREAM further provides additional web services on its portal (https://www.stream-srf.com/products/) in the form of routine updated data products and forecasts. Two such services are the Marine Heat Wave Service and the ROSARIO Marine Forecast.