A Digital Twin of the Baltic Sea is Being Created, a Unique European Model for Shipping and Energy

Polish scientists and IT specialists have begun implementing an ambitious, pioneering European-scale project to build a digital twin of the Baltic Sea. The initiative involves creating a virtual, dynamic representation of the entire basin in a computing cloud, which will simulate physical, chemical, and biological processes in real time. The model is to be powered by data from an extensive network of sensors on buoys, Earth-observing satellites, and Automatic Identification Systems (AIS). 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 operation. Their adaptation to modeling entire, complex marine ecosystems is a new and complicated engineering-scientific challenge, requiring the integration of huge, heterogeneous datasets and the powerful computing capacity of the cloud. The main practical goal of the project is support for safe and efficient shipping. The model is to deliver precise, localized forecasts of weather conditions, sea currents, and ice phenomena. This can significantly improve ship route planning, optimize fuel consumption, and prevent accidents. The second key area of application is the dynamically developing offshore wind energy sector in the Baltic Sea. The digital twin is to help investors and operators optimally locate wind farms, forecast their performance based on wind conditions, and plan service and maintenance work, minimizing downtime and costs. The tool will also be used for advanced, continuous monitoring of the marine environment. It will track in real time the spread of pollution, including potential oil spills, the development of toxic cyanobacterial blooms, and changes in water parameters such as temperature, salinity, and oxygen concentration, 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 leader from the Institute of Oceanology of the Polish Academy of Sciences This is intended to be an instrument supporting both crisis management and long-term, data-driven policy for the protection of this sensitive, semi-enclosed sea. The project is being implemented by a consortium of Polish scientific institutions, which includes leading marine institutes such as the Institute of Oceanology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, and centers specializing in advanced data processing, numerical modeling, and cloud technologies. Funding comes from the national scientific research program and European funds, likely including the Horizon Europe program. The work will last several years, with the first operational functionalities, aimed at selected test user groups such as hydrographic services or wind farm operators, expected to be available within the next two years. The success of the initiative depends on the efficient integration of diverse, often dispersed data streams, the development of advanced artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms for their analysis, and ensuring adequate, scalable computing power in the cloud. The creation of the Baltic Sea digital twin is a significant step towards the digitalization of the maritime economy and fits into the broader global trend of creating Ocean Digital Twin.