A Digital Twin of the Baltic Sea is Being Created. It Will Support Shipping and Energy

Polish scientists and IT specialists have begun an ambitious project to build a digital twin of the Baltic Sea, which is intended to be the first such advanced model of an entire sea basin in Europe. The initiative involves creating a virtual, dynamic representation of the sea in a computational cloud, simulating physical, chemical, and biological processes in real-time. The model will be powered by data from an extensive network of sensors deployed on buoys, Earth observation satellites, and automatic ship identification systems. Digital twins, i.e., virtual copies of physical objects or processes, have been developing since the beginning of the 21st century, finding application mainly in industry, e.g., for simulating machine operations. Their adaptation for modeling entire ecosystems, especially marine ones, is a new and complex challenge, requiring the integration of vast datasets and cloud computing power. The main practical goal of the project is to support safe and efficient shipping. The model is to provide precise, localized forecasts of weather conditions, sea currents, and ice phenomena, which could significantly improve ship route planning and prevent accidents. The second key area of application is the developing offshore wind energy sector in the Baltic Sea. The digital twin is intended to help optimally locate wind farms, forecast their efficiency, and plan maintenance work, minimizing risk and costs. The tool will also be used for advanced monitoring of the marine environment's state. It will track the spread of pollution, including potential oil spills, the development of toxic cyanobacterial blooms, and changes in water parameters related to eutrophication and climate warming. „Chcemy stworzyć żywy, oddychający model Bałtyku, który nie tylko pokaże nam, co dzieje się teraz, ale także pozwoli przewidywać, co może się zdarzyć w przyszłości pod wpływem różnych czynników.” (We want to create a living, breathing model of the Baltic Sea, which will not only show us what is happening now but also allow us to predict what might happen in the future under the influence of various factors.) — Project Lead for the Baltic Sea Digital Twin at the Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences. It is meant to be an instrument supporting crisis management and long-term policy for protecting this sensitive ecosystem. The project is being carried out by a consortium of Polish scientific institutions, including leading marine institutes and centers specializing in data processing and cloud computing. Funding comes from a national scientific research program and European funds. The work will last several years, with the first operational functionalities, aimed at selected user groups, expected to be available within the next two years. The success of the initiative depends on the efficient integration of diverse data streams, the development of artificial intelligence algorithms for their analysis, and ensuring adequate computing power. The creation of the Baltic Sea's digital twin is a significant step towards the digitalization of the maritime economy and could strengthen Poland's position as an innovative country in blue economy technology.