MERMAID: A digital twin for the Baltic Sea

A new chapter in Baltic Sea research has officially kicked off: the project titled Integrated Environmental Forecasting Services for Safe Operations in the Baltic Sea Area (MERMAID – Marine and Environmental Research Modeling and Analysis for Intelligent Decisions) secured funding through the Foundation for Polish Science’s FIRST TEAM / Team Net FENG program!

The MERMAID project is a pioneering initiative to build a state-of-the-art operational forecasting platform for the Baltic Sea, unique in Europe. By coupling atmospheric, oceanic, wave, sea-ice, and southern Baltic coastal process models, the project will establish a unified, high-resolution framework running on HPC infrastructure. This will deliver real-time operational forecasts for sea waves, currents, ice dynamics, pollutant dispersion, and key ecosystem indicators — accessible through API services and interactive visualization tools designed for seamless integration with ports, offshore industries, and administrative bodies.

Ultimately, MERMAID aims to deploy a comprehensive Digital Twin of the Baltic Sea. This platform will boost maritime safety, streamline port and offshore wind operations, and advance environmental conservation alongside climate adaptation strategies. Its fine spatial resolution outperforms existing models, enabling the accurate simulation of localized events — including extreme wave conditions, storm surges, and dynamic coastal mechanisms — that conventional operational systems have struggled to resolve.

The project will be carried out by a powerful and synergistic consortium headed by the University of Warsaw (Interdisciplinary Centre for Mathematical and Computational Modelling), alongside the Institute of Oceanology at the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Hydro-Engineering at the Polish Academy of Sciences. The initiative merges expertise across meteorology, operational oceanography, mathematical modeling, hydrodynamics, and coastal engineering with a proven track record in deploying and commercializing predictive tools. Synthesizing scientific knowledge, high-performance computing, and industry partnerships, the team aims to advance fundamental research into mission-critical operational services for the maritime sector.

Built from the ground up around real operational needs, the project is structured around close interaction with key stakeholders across navigation safety, maritime management, vessel classification and certification, hydrography, offshore energy, port and coastal infrastructure, marine fisheries, and power generation. Partners notably include the Maritime Office in Gdynia and the Polish Register of Shipping.

Spanning three years, the project has been awarded a total budget of PLN 12,519,152.30, 100% funded through the European Funds for Modern Economy (FENG) program. The project lead is Prof. Piotr Gwiazda, with Dr. Maciej Wrona acting as lead technology transfer broker. The research teams at IO PAN and IBW PAN will be led by Prof. Lidia Dzierzbicka-Głowacka and Prof. Rafał Ostrowski, respectively.

Warm congratulations to all recipients of the TEAM NET FENG grant!