Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) evolution: new and innovative ocean data assimilation techniques

The EU Funding & Tenders Portal has announced a grant opportunity under the Horizon Europe program, specifically the HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-44 call. This initiative is geared towards enhancing the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) by implementing innovative ocean data assimilation techniques. It constitutes a Research and Innovation Action (HORIZON-RIA) and is structured as a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant. The proposal submission opening date is May 22, 2025, with a deadline set for September 25, 2025.

Eligible applicants include universities, research institutions, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and large entities possessing capabilities in marine science, space technology, and Earth observations. The project stage focuses on research, development, and innovation, particularly on improving ocean monitoring and predictions, along with enhancing user experiences with advancements in forecasting systems.

The anticipated EU funding contribution per project is between €1 million and €3 million. The call emphasizes single-stage submissions, promoting international collaboration and interaction with relevant entities associated with Copernicus services. Proposed projects should aim to contribute to climate resilience, marine management, and operational deployment of results.

The initiative solicits proposals that will advance coupled data assimilation, multi-scale methods, and the application of artificial intelligence in data assimilation schemes. Projects should explore the use of new observation types and focus on developing necessary software infrastructure while ensuring that research results can transition to operational applications.

The call encourages seeking improvements in data assimilation methodologies, recognizing the limitations of current techniques and pushing for innovative approaches including collaboration with past Horizon-funded projects. There are no co-funding requirements stated, as significant portions of eligible costs will be covered.

Potential contributions to the European Digital Twin Ocean and the GEO Blue Planet initiative are sought after, along with an emphasis on proper intellectual property management. The general conditions for application include adherence to admissibility and eligibility conditions outlined in the Horizon Europe Work Programme.

In summary, this grant opportunity invites entities with expertise in ocean monitoring to propose innovative solutions that enhance the capabilities of the CMEMS, with a total program budget of €5 million allocated to this specific topic. The expected success rates for applications are competitive, within a range of approximately 10 to 39%.

The EU Funding & Tenders Portal presents a call for proposals under the Horizon Europe (HORIZON) program, specifically the SPACE-HADEA (HORIZON-CL4-2025-02) call, focusing on "Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) evolution: new and innovative ocean data assimilation techniques" with the topic identifier HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-44. This is a HORIZON Research and Innovation Action (HORIZON-RIA) with a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS] model grant agreement. The call is currently open for submission with a single-stage deadline. The opening date was May 22, 2025, and the deadline for submission is September 25, 2025, at 17:00:00 Brussels time.

The expected outcomes of the projects should contribute to: Improving ocean monitoring and predictions to maintain international leadership; Ensuring CMEMS users fully benefit from advancements in observations, reanalysis, analysis, and forecasting systems; Strengthening data assimilation development exchanges between operational centers and facilitating contributions from the scientific community.

The scope of the call encompasses several Research and Innovation (R&I) areas: Coupled data assimilation between ocean components (biogeochemistry, sea-ice, waves, atmosphere) to control ocean state variables and leverage observations; Development of multi-scale methods for assimilating high-resolution and high-frequency observations; Development of methods for reliable estimation of analysis and forecast uncertainties; Application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques in data assimilation schemes, such as emulators for ensemble generation, model error estimation, bias correction, scale separation, and model parameter estimation; Utilization of new observation types (e.g., Sentinel Expansion and Next Generation missions, new in-situ observations) or higher-resolution data streams; Development of methods and tools for systematic assessment of the observing system impact in data assimilation systems; Development of software infrastructure to accommodate various assimilation methods (including AI) and facilitate algorithm sharing and code optimization on high-performance computers; Development of validation and intercomparison protocols to estimate and quantify the benefits of improved assimilation methods and integration of new observations.

The call emphasizes the need for a step change in data assimilation techniques to fully utilize new observation types and improvements in space/time sampling. It recognizes the limitations of current techniques and encourages the exploration of emerging coupling, multi-scale, ensemble, and AI techniques for significant improvements in ocean data assimilation. Proposals should include demonstrations of downstream applications benefiting from these improvements.

The transfer of research results to operational settings is a priority, with active attention required to strengthen readiness for operational deployment. Projects should involve and interact with relevant Entrusted Entities of the Copernicus services, addressing conditions for making results available, re-using, and exploiting them, including Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). Software developed should be open licensed.

Potential contributions to the European Digital Twin Ocean and the GEO Blue Planet initiative are encouraged, with CMEMS expected to remain a key player. International cooperation is also encouraged. Actions should build on or cooperate with previous or ongoing Horizon funded projects contributing to the global ocean observing value chain, such as LandSeaLot, EPOC, EERIE, and ObsSea4Clim. The integration of the gender dimension (sex and gender analysis) in research and innovation content should be addressed if relevant to the research objectives.

The general conditions for this call include: Admissibility conditions related to proposal page limits and layout as described in Annex A and Annex E of the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes and Part B of the Application Form; Eligibility of countries as described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes, with specific provisions for non-EU/non-Associated Countries as detailed in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide; Other eligible conditions requiring the use of Copernicus and/or Galileo/EGNOS for projects using satellite-based earth observation data, and allowing the Joint Research Centre (JRC) to participate as a consortium member; Financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria as described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes; Evaluation and award criteria, with a maximum of one project funded, as described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes; Submission and evaluation processes as described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual; Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement as described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes; Legal and financial setup of the grants, with eligible costs taking the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021, and other aspects described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes and the specific topic of the Work Programme.

Application and evaluation forms, as well as the model grant agreement (MGA), are available in the Submission System. Templates include the standard application form (HE RIA, IA) and evaluation form (HE RIA, IA). Guidance is provided in the HE Programme Guide and the Lump Sum MGA. Call-specific instructions and a detailed budget table (HE LS) are also available, along with guidance on lump sums.

Additional documents include: HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 1. General Introduction; HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 7. Digital, Industry and Space; HE Main Work Programme 2025 – 14. General Annexes; HE Programme Guide; HE Framework Programme 2021/695; HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764; EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509; Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme; Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment; EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement; Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual; Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions; Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

The budget overview indicates a total budget of EUR 5,000,000 for the HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-44 topic, with an indicative number of one grant to be awarded. The opening date for contributions is May 22, 2025, and the deadline is September 25, 2025.

There are 27 partner search announcements available for collaboration on this topic. LEARs, Account Administrators, and self-registrants can publish partner requests on the Funding & Tenders Portal.

To start the submission process, applicants should click on the submission button next to the HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions [HORIZON-RIA] and HORIZON Lump Sum Grant [HORIZON-AG-LS] options.

For help and support, applicants can refer to the Online Manual, Horizon Europe Programme Guide, Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ, Research Enquiry Service, National Contact Points (NCPs), Enterprise Europe Network, IT Helpdesk, European IPR Helpdesk, and CEN-CENELEC/ETSI Research Helpdesks.

In summary, this Horizon Europe call focuses on advancing ocean data assimilation techniques for the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS). It seeks to improve ocean monitoring and predictions through innovative approaches, including AI, multi-scale methods, and better use of satellite and in-situ observations. The call encourages collaboration, open licensing of software, and contributions to the European Digital Twin Ocean and GEO Blue Planet initiative. The funding is provided as a lump sum, and the deadline for submissions is September 25, 2025. This opportunity is aimed at research institutions and organizations with expertise in oceanography, data assimilation, artificial intelligence, and satellite observations, seeking to enhance the capabilities of CMEMS and contribute to global ocean monitoring efforts.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated, but based on the nature of Horizon Europe calls, they typically include universities, research institutes, SMEs, large enterprises, and other legal entities capable of conducting research and innovation activities. The Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as a member of the consortium selected for funding.

Funding Type: The funding type is primarily a grant, specifically a HORIZON Lump Sum Grant, under the HORIZON Research and Innovation Actions (HORIZON-RIA) and HORIZON Coordination and Support Actions (HORIZON-CSA) and HORIZON Innovation Actions (HORIZON-IA).

Consortium Requirement: The opportunity appears to favor consortia, as the Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as a member of the consortium. However, single applicants might be eligible depending on the specific topic requirements.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): Eligible countries are described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes. A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.

Target Sector: The target sector is space, specifically focusing on the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) evolution, ocean monitoring and predictions, data assimilation techniques, satellite data, in-situ observations, artificial intelligence, and related software infrastructure.

Mentioned Countries: The opportunity mentions non-EU/non-Associated Countries that have specific provisions for funding participants in Horizon Europe projects. It encourages international cooperation.

Project Stage: The project stage targets research, development, and innovation, with an emphasis on transferring research results to operational deployment. This suggests a focus on development, validation, and demonstration stages, with a view towards commercialization.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic within the call:
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-11: around €1,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-12: €1,000,000 to €3,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-13: €4,000,000 to €7,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-21: €6,000,000 to €12,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-22: €12,000,000 to €17,500,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-23: €10,000,000 to €12,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-24: €2,000,000 to €3,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-31: €1,000,000 to €5,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-32: €2,000,000 to €6,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-41: around €10,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-42: around €3,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-43: around €3,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-44: around €5,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-45: around €12,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-46: around €5,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-71: €4,500,000 to €5,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-72: €3,500,000 to €4,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-73: €800,000 to €1,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-74: €2,500,000 to €3,000,000
HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-81: €450,000 to €500,000

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a lump sum grant.

Application Stages: The application process involves a single stage.

Success Rates: The success rates are not explicitly mentioned.

Co-funding Requirement: The co-funding requirement is not explicitly mentioned.

Summary: This Horizon Europe call, under the SPACE-HADEA (HORIZON-CL4-2025-02) program, focuses on the evolution of the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) through new and innovative ocean data assimilation techniques. The call invites proposals for Research and Innovation Actions (RIA), Coordination and Support Actions (CSA) and Innovation Actions (IA) aimed at improving ocean monitoring and predictions, ensuring CMEMS users benefit from advanced systems, and strengthening data assimilation development. Key areas of interest include coupled data assimilation, multi-scale methods, uncertainty estimation, use of Artificial Intelligence, new observation types, and software infrastructure development. The call encourages international cooperation and building upon existing Horizon funded projects. Eligible entities can receive funding as lump sum grants, with varying budget allocations for different topics, and are expected to transfer research results to operational deployments, contributing to the European Digital Twin Ocean and the GEO Blue Planet initiative. The submission deadline is September 25, 2025.