Lead institution:
Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn – Italy
The augmented observatory NEREA (www.nerea-observatory.org; https://www.imeko.org/publications/tc19-Metrosea-2019/IMEKO-TC19-METROSEA-2019-20.pdf) is an initiative for integrating and augmenting the Marechiara LTER (Long Term Ecological Research, active since 1983) in the Gulf of Naples with moorings, stand-alone seabed platform, regular short cruises across gradients (polluted vs pristine sites, vertical dimension, oligotrophy/eutrophic) and question-driven process studies, using both innovative (genomics, imaging-both HD and acoustic cameras, microplastics sampling) and traditional techniques (including trace elements analyses).
The NEREA project is thus designed to promote and to apply multidisciplinary approaches, from the sampling strategy, to the development of new indicators for ocean health and of new models of the ocean microbiomes.
This Project is hosted by the Ocean Decade Programme Ocean Biomolecular Observing Network (OBON)
Start date: 01/04/2019
End date: 31/12/2032
Lead Contact: Raffaella Casotti (raffaella.casotti@szn.it)