The escalating algae bloom invasions, typically Sargassum in regions like the Caribbean and South Atlantic, driven by rising sea temperatures and fertilizer emissions, demand innovative solutions. These events have led to significant damage on vital sectors like fisheries, ports, and tourism, with adverse effects on marine fauna and human health increasing each year.
Traditional monitoring methods involving speed boats and aerial surveillance have recently been replaced by automated satellite detection, although still with some limitations. While satellites provide real-time data on seaweed locations, they lack predictive capabilities and have time gaps between passes. To enhance algae bloom management, bridging this gap is the next imperative step.
DES’s unique software predicts Sargassum bloom trajectories with high accuracy within just minutes, based on our own metocean dataset and an automatized satellite image assimilation system. It provides advance warnings to authorities and tourist hotspots, allowing proactive measures to minimize impact to be taken days ahead, and so making coastal areas safer and more enjoyable.
Success Stories
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01
2023. ESA BIC
DES has secured funding by the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Madri+d Foundation to boost its algae modeling tool. The goal is to further integrate global satellite imagery in the current SaaS tool for more efficient algae management strategies in the main Caribbean tourist hotspots.
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02
2023. Oceanus
Active project with our partner Oceanus in Mexico to demonstrate the application of an early alert system for sargassum detection and modelling in the Yucatan peninsula.
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03
2023. Trichodesmium
DES and our partners CSIC-ICMAT and ECOAQUA joined forces to successfully predict Trichodesmium microalgae blooms in the Canary Islands, safeguarding public health and coastal resources using high-res satellite imagery and metocean data.