The Sea of Possibilities

INESC TEC Science Bits – Episode 40

Listen to the episode here (*Portuguese only)

Guest: Diana Viegas, researcher at INESC TEC

Keywords: sea, robotics, preservation, monitoring, innovation, emerging sectors, knowledge

In this episode, we embark on a conversation that will take us underwater, towards the deep sea – but not exclusively!

Before we dive in, let’s check some figures about the Portuguese sea; we have a coastline of about two thousand and five hundred kilometres; one of the largest Exclusive Economic Zones in the world, the fifth largest in Europe – covering more than 1.7 million square kilometres and representing 95% of the national territory; the maritime triangle located between mainland Portugal and the archipelagos of Madeira and the Azores constitutes 48% of all marine waters adjacent to the European continent. Furthermore, we are under consideration by the United Nations to extend the continental shelf to an area exceeding four million square kilometres — equivalent to nearly 90% of the European Union’s sea area; if approved, it will place Portugal in the 16^th position worldwide.

Despite having “a sea of possibilities” ahead of us, we also have the responsibility to know, defend, preserve, and sustainably exploit the sea and its resources. In this sense, science and technology can play a fundamental role. How so? In this episode, Diana Viegas, a researcher at INESC TEC, explains the solutions we have been developing – particularly, in robotics – to increase our knowledge about the sea, address environmental challenges, promote sustainable use of resources, and boost sectors related to the sea – including emerging sectors like aquaculture, marine energy, or environmental monitoring.