Space Agency giving NI funding to monitor harmful algaeblooms from above

The UK Space Agency has announced funding for a project to monitor harmful blooms in Northern Ireland waters, from the skies.

When Lough Neagh was overcome with blue-green algae last summer, a satellite image from Europe's Copernicus Open Access Hub showed just how bad the situation had become.

Now NI Space is getting a share of £500,000 carved out to improve the delivery of government services using space assets and data in the hope it can predict future outbreaks.

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The project was announced at Space-Comm Expo in London on Thursday. It will also include the monitoring of seaweed production.

NI SPACE cluster manager, Robert Hill, said: "NI Space welcomes this announcement regarding £500k funding for six projects, one of which includes NI Space working with Space Wales and Space East to leverage Earth observation capabilities to monitor Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) and Seaweed production.

"The importance of the being able to use satellite applications to support our understanding of harmful algal blooms cannot be understated. Satellites and the assets that it provides, give us the opportunity to look at a more holistic view to predict when things are going to happen, and analyse and mitigate against future situations.

"This work with Space Wales and Space East, East Anglia, is going to help us better understand what exists already to inform us about both harmful algal blooms, and seaweed production and manufacturing which is becoming a very important commercial market and also try to understand how we can address any skills gaps we need to address these problems.”

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