Technology and innovation
ICOS drives technical innovation as well as innovative data approach, for example in using FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) principles in environmental research data. ICOS supports scientific developments and adapts to the demands of its scientific community. All ICOS stations provide high-quality observations using state-of-the-art technologies.
ICOS is working on providing tools for interactive analysis of data and model results, thereby securing reproducibility by using web-based technologies and direct access to ICOS data and elaborated products. Through this, ICOS will enable transparent analyses, interactive collaboration of modellers and data providers, and connections to computing resources in the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC).
High data standards drives technological improvement
ICOS’s effectiveness in unifying the European climate science field has already had effects on technology and innovation. The larger the ICOS network becomes, the greater its impact on technology and innovation.
ICOS acts as a single large procurer with high standards. Industrial partners indicate that these standards drive them to develop new or improved measurement methods and hardware innovations, and to increase the quality of their products. According to suppliers of sensors and measurement instrumentation, having ICOS as a client is regarded as a quality certificate.
Linking education, research and innovation
It is important for ICOS to promote technological development and demonstrations related to greenhouse gases by linking research, education and innovation. One of ICOS’s key features is the possibility to dynamically implement technological and state-of-the-art scientific upgrades by introducing new techniques, instruments and observed variables.
Cooperation with industry
Examples of cooperation between industry and ICOS can be found across all domains. According to the ICOS Impact Assessment report, industrial partners expect that ICOS will have a growing influence on their market as ICOS begins publishing data measured with their instruments.
The Thematic Centres, specifically, have experience with industrial cooperation:
- The Atmosphere Thematic Centre (ATC) metrology lab has built collaborations with industrial companies to test emerging technologies. Innovative ICOS ATC software is used by ICOS Principal Investigators for quality control and for station network management systems.
- The Ecosystem Thematic Centre (ETC) and Carbon Portal cooperated with private companies in the development of a specific logger for the automatic data-submission process.
- The Ocean Thematic Centre (OTC) has partnered with a private company to validate the ICOS ocean data from fixed ocean stations using a wind-powered, fully autonomous ocean drone (Saildrone). OTC is also engaging instrument suppliers to an inter-comparison campaign to reach a high level of standardisation.