3 June 2026
Open Science is becoming a reality and the new normal. This is the exciting message that the NODC brought back from the last General Assembly (GA) of the Blue-Cloud 2026 project, held alongside the 13th European Open Science Cloud Association (EOSC-A) GA, in Brussels from 26 to 29 May.
EOSC is the federated European environment where researchers can find, access, share, and reuse data, tools, and services, promoting open research practices across disciplines and countries. In November 2025, the federation of EOSC Nodes was launched to establish a network between data repositories and services. The European Digital Twin Ocean EOSC Node originated from the Blue-Cloud initiative, which successfully piloted a marine thematic node to advance high-quality marine science in support of the European Digital Twin of the Ocean (EDITO) programme and its implementing facilities. The Node federates multidisciplinary marine data, offering Virtual Research Environments (VREs) and Virtual Labs (VLabs), as well as supporting ocean research and FAIR-based collaboration.
During the last Blue-Cloud event, the NODC presented the Blue-Cloud workbenches for Essential Ocean Variables (EOVs) in ocean chemistry, such as temperature, salinity, chlorophyll, nutrients, and dissolved oxygen. Specifically, the poster concerns the Eutrophication Workbench (EWB), which focuses on chlorophyll, nutrients, and dissolved oxygen. This workflow integrates data from the Chemistry component of the European Marine Observation and Data Network, Copernicus Marine, and the World Ocean Database. The harmonised, standardised and validated EOV datasets in biogeochemistry support eutrophication and acidification assessment in European and global initiatives such as EDITO, EOSC, the UNESCO Sustainable Development Goal 'Life Below Water', the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, and the EU Mission Ocean and Waters.
Find out more about the Blue-Cloud workbench in the poster Eutrophication workbench: Advancing harmonisation, standardisation and big-data workflows for eutrophication EOVs in marine science.
Back from the EOSC-A GA Alessandra Giorgetti, head of the National Oceanographic Data Centre at the OGS reported:
“The OGS is proud to endorse the EOSC-A's position paper, unanimously adopted at the latest EOSC-A GA.” and continued, “The paper calls on EU decision-makers to establish a distinct Work Programme-based Partnership for EOSC under the 10th Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, with the EOSC-A as an equal partner in the tripartite governance alongside Member States, Associated Countries, and the European Commission. As a member of the EOSC-A, OGS shares the conviction that this is the right path forward to sustain the momentum of the EOSC Federation and capitalise on years of investment across European, national, and organisational levels.”
