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FORINFRA-Nasj.sats. forskn.infrastrukt

Integrated Carbon Observation System (ICOS) Norway and Ocean Thematic Centre (OTC), phase 2

Alternative title: Integrated Carbon Observation System (ICOS) Norway and Ocean Thematic Centre (OTC), fase 2

Awarded: NOK 34.1 mill.

Integrated Carbon Observation System (ICOS) is a European research infrastructure forming an observation system that measure and assess atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations ensuring independent and reliable carbon measurements. Through observations, ICOS provides knowledge on how societies have succeeded in reducing their greenhouse gas emissions and how emissions are regionally distributed. ICOS-Norway is the Norwegian component of ICOS. It delivers standardized and high-quality carbon data from different sites and platforms, including towers for air measurements in southern Norway and at Svalbard, a forest station in south-eastern Norway, and the use of two research ships and three commercial ships in the North Atlantic, the Nordic Seas, and areas around Svalbard. This observation system will be an important tool to verify Norway and EU`s efforts to mitigate climate change. Data from the various platforms are be integrated and made available to carbon system scientists and various interested parties such as research communities, national agencies, oil and energy companies, and fisheries. The Ocean Thematic Centre (OTC) is one of four central facilities within ICOS. OTC currently coordinates twenty-three ocean stations from eight countries monitoring carbon uptake and fluxes in the North Atlantic, Nordic Seas, Baltic, and the Mediterranean Sea.

In N-ICOS-2 we request funding to (1) further develop the infrastructure ICOS-Norway (https://no.icos-cp.eu) as the integrated Norwegian component of the distributed European Research Infrastructure (RI) Integrated Carbon Observation System (ICOS); and (2) host and further develop the ICOS Ocean Thematic Centre (OTC) (https://otc.icos-cp.eu), one of the main central facilities within the ICOS RI. Through the proposed infrastructure, ICOS-Norway provide highly needed top quality ocean, atmosphere, and terrestrial greenhouse gas (GHG) data from 10 observational stations in Norway and the surrounding oceans (the northern North Atlantic, Nordic Seas, and waters around Svalbard). ICOS-Norway will also supply integrated products and assessments for various stakeholders, including scientific use and governmental agencies. This is key to verifying Norwegian committments to the Paris Agreement. Through the proposed infrastructure ICOS OTC will be building on the already leading international role of Norwegian scientists in developing and coordinating ocean carbon measurements. This includes station labelling, training, and data management procedures (e.g., quality control, distribution, liaison with the ICOS Carbon Portal).

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FORINFRA-Nasj.sats. forskn.infrastrukt

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