SWAN HELLENIC UNVEILS ITS 2025 CRUISING4OCEANS SCIENTIFIC SUPPORT FOR EU MISSION OCEAN
Initiative launched in August 2024 is now helping feed EU marine environment database for scientists and meteorologists to improve ocean health forecasting. |
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SWAN HELLENIC UNVEILS ITS 2025 CRUISING4OCEANS SCIENTIFIC SUPPORT FOR EU MISSION OCEAN
Initiative launched in August 2024 is now helping feed EU marine environment database for scientists and meteorologists to improve ocean health forecasting. |
Category: Europe - Industry economy
- Sustainability
This is a press release selected by our editorial committee and published online for free on 2025-02-11
 Photo credit © Swan Hellenic
Last December, it built on this by becoming the first shipping company to supply the EU Mission with data collected on board. As a result, scientists can now access this precious information online through the European Marine Observation and Data Network (EMODnet).
EMODnet is the European Commission’s source of trusted in situ marine environment and human activity data, collected from coast to remote open ocean, and surface to deep sea floor. This today includes Citizen Science data of verified quality and reliability from Swan Hellenic’s Cruising4Oceans initiative, which EMODnet began “ingesting” from 4 December 2024.
Swan Hellenic’s expedition cruise ships SH Vega and SH Diana began collecting this data around Svalbard in the Arctic last August, when the Cruising4Oceans initiative was launched. The data ranges from information on metocean conditions to water temperature, salinity and conductivity. The data collected so far in the Arctic, Greenland and Antarctica have proved extremely valuable not just to oceanographers monitoring water temperatures, for example, but also to meteorologists, helping them to improve their weather forecasting models.
“EMODnet is enabling new open science perspectives, and its data are routinely used by world-leading climate and oceanographic institutes.” says Antonio Novellino, coordinator of EMODnet Physics and one of the managers of the EMODnet data exchange.
“However, data from certain remote areas are scarce since it is difficult and costly to carry out scientific campaigns there. That’s why our partnership with Swan Hellenic is so important”.
The initiative is one in a series of Citizen Science programs through which Swan Hellenic guests and onboard experts have for several years contributed valuable data to the scientific community.
These include reporting cloud data with NASA, recording whale sightings with Happywhale, monitoring phytoplankton with the Secchi Disk Study, and Antarctic seabird numbers with Stony Brook University. The immense potential value of such Citizen Science data has been clearly identified in scientific studies.
Swan Hellenic CEO Andrea Zito comments: “We are honored to be helping this vital EU Mission develop the most appropriate methodology and will be delighted to share it with other operators to ensure a substantial volume of reliable data can be obtained.”
But feeding EMODnet is not the only impact of Cruising4Oceans. Scientists are also using the water samples obtained to calibrate the biosensors used in the AquaBioSens device currently under development with European Commission funding by five leading research and innovation bodies. This exciting hand-held device – ideal for use by swimmers, for instance – will enable water safety tests to be carried out in minutes compared with the current 24 hours.
What’s more, Swan Hellenic is set to expand its Citizen Science activities still further in 2025, and in two ways. Firstly, it will assist expert understanding of climate-driven biodiversity changes by collecting georeferenced pictures of flora and fauna taken by its guests. Of greater potential impact, however, it will also be exploring how to best record and provide vital data on environmental DNA (eDNA).
European Climate Pact Ambassador Mario Dogliani explains: “eDNA is the genetic material left by organisms in the environment, so it can be used to detect the presence of species and assess biodiversity. It has tremendous potential for spotting climate-driven trends earlier and forecasting the migration of species from their original ecosystems. But it needs broad-scale best practices to be effective, which is exactly what Swan Hellenic’s Cruising4Oceans will contribute to achieving”.
About Swan Hellenic
Swan Hellenic was relaunched in July 2020 to proudly advance the spirit of cultural expedition cruising the company pioneered in the 1950s. Building on its British roots, the new company has a distinctly cosmopolitan culture dedicated to providing guests with global opportunities to see what others don’t.
Swan Hellenic's purpose-built boutique ships feature elegant Scandi-design interiors, extensive outdoor spaces and dedicated expedition facilities. SH Minerva and SH Vega, two 5-star Polar Code PC 5 expedition cruise ships with ice-strengthened hulls, launched in December 2021 and July 2022. Both accommodate 152 guests in 76 spacious suites and staterooms, the majority with large balconies. A slightly larger PC 6 ice-class vessel, SH Diana, accommodating 192 guests in the same distinctive comfort and style in 96 staterooms and suites, was launched in April 2023.
While sharing the unique design features of her sister ships, SH Diana also introduces certain key enhancements, including a dedicated presentation and lecture theatre overlooking the lounge, and on-board Tender boats to take guests ashore in addition to and in greater comfort than the customary expedition Zodiacs. Like her siblings, SH Diana features a state-of-the-art gym, spa, panoramic sauna, club room and swimming pool with poolside grill.
All three ships feature three dining venues – the Swan Restaurant, Club Lounge and Pool Bar & Grill – and are built in full compliance with SOLAS Safe Return to Port requirements. Dedicated to guests with a passion for adventure and cultural exploration, the company’s meticulously planned itineraries explore the wild landscapes, wildlife, peoples and cultures of the world’s less travelled and most historic regions.
The crews each include a team of 12 seasoned expedition guides, expert speakers and lecturers, for a total complement of 120 and 140 persons respectively, offering outstanding staff-to-guest ratios to deliver the highest standards of attentive personal service.
Swan Hellenic’s cultural expedition cruises have always been distinguished by the company, guidance and expert lectures of famous explorers, seasoned expedition guides and leading authorities in their fields. Now, many of the cruises are also enriched by partnerships with unique organizations to bring very different experts on board in the same way, including JRE-Jeunes Restaurateurs and the SETI Institute.
Maris Culinary Discovery at Sea brings a different JRE gourmet chef aboard each in a series of exclusive cruises which take guests on a parallel voyage of gastronomic discovery. While the SETI Explore Space at Sea Series brings a different world-renowned scientist from the SETI Institute aboard each cruise to provide guests with expert insights into the history and latest discoveries in astronomy, astrophysics, astrobiology and planetary science, as well as the quest to find other forms of life within and beyond our solar system.
On many cruises, guests can also participate in Swan Hellenic’s Citizen Science partnerships, contributing valuable data obtained during their expeditions and on board, reporting cloud data with NASA, recording whale sightings with Happywhale, monitoring phytoplankton with the Secchi Disk Study, and Antarctic seabird numbers with Stony Brook University.
Headquartered in Cyprus with offices in London (serving the UK and Ireland), Dusseldorf (serving Continental Europe), Monaco, Fort Lauderdale (serving the North American market), Hong Kong (serving Greater China, India and South-East Asia), and Sydney (serving Australia-New Zealand), together with a partnership serving Japan, Swan Hellenic supports the travel trade with local specialist partners to provide customers with expert personal service worldwide.
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