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A Harbour Seal photographed at Dun Laoghaire Marina on Dublin Bay, Ireland. Also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere. The most widely distributed species of pinnipeds, they are found in coastal waters of the northern Atlantic and Pacific oceans, Baltic and North seas. Photo: AfloatA photograph of a Harbour Seal taken at Dun Laoghaire Marina on Dublin Bay, Ireland. Also known as the common seal, this species can be found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines throughout the Northern Hemisphere. They are the most widely distributed species of pinnipeds and can be found in the coastal waters of the northern Atlantic and Pacific oceans, as well as the Baltic and North Seas. Photo: Afloat

Displaying items by tag: Rotterdam

#Rowing: Paul O'Donovan and Fintan McCarthy took a second silver medal for Ireland after an extraordinary final of the lightweight double sculls at the World Cup in Rotterdam today.

Ireland took over the lead early and led all the way until they were caught right on the line by Germany - the photo finish showed just .03 of a second between the crews.

The race had a memorable moment in the second quarter. Paul O'Donovan showed great calmness to reach down and grab what looked like the stroke coach of the bowman which had gone over the side to shuck it back in the boat. The incident may have cost the crew time, but they retained their lead from there to the line.

 Ronan Byrne and Philip Doyle had earlier sculled really well to take silver in the men's openweight double sculls.

World Cup Regatta, Rotterdam, Day Three (Irish interest)

Men

Double Sculls - A Final: 1 Switzerland 6:41.04, 2 Ireland (P Doyle, R Byrne) 6:41.74, 3 Britain 6:44.95.

Lightweight Double Sculls - A Final: 1 Germany 7:01.59, 2 Ireland (F McCarthy, P O'Donovan) 7:01.62, 3 Norway 7:02.26.

Women

Pair - A Final: 1 Australia 7:26.15, 2 New Zealand 7:27.57, 3 Britain 7:40.51; Ireland (A Crowley, M Dukarska) 7:50.08.

Lightweight Double Sculls - B Final (places 7 to 12): 6 Ireland (L Heaphy, D Walsh) 7:45.98.

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: Ireland took a silver medal at the World Cup Regatta in Rotterdam. The double of Ronan Byrne and Philip Doyle mastered tough conditions well. They moved steadily up on early leaders Switzerland and Germany, and passed the Germans. They then pushed right up on Switzerland and, with a tremendous finish, closed to under a length off them - .7 of a second - as the crews crossed the line.

World Cup Regatta, Rotterdam, Day Three (Irish interest)

Men

Double Sculls - A Final: 1 Switzerland 6:41.04, 2 Ireland (P Doyle, R Byrne) 6:41.74, 3 Britain 6:44.95.

Women

Pair - A Final: 1 Australia 7:26.15, 2 New Zealand 7:27.57, 3 Britain 7:40.51; Ireland (A Crowley, M Dukarska) 7:50.08.

Lightweight Double Sculls - B Final (places 7 to 12): 6 Ireland (L Heaphy, D Walsh) 7:45.98.

 

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: Ireland's Aileen Crowley and Monika Dukarska took sixth in the A Final of the women's pairs at the World Cup Regatta in Rotterdam. Ireland featured well in the early stages, but Australia and New Zealand moved away. They would finish in that order after a good battle. Britain took the bronze. Ireland and Spain battled for fifth, with Spain taking it by 1.63 seconds.

 Lydia Heaphy and Denise Walsh finished sixth in their B Final of the lightweight double sculls, to take 12th overall.

World Cup Regatta, Rotterdam, Day Three (Irish interest)

Women

Pair - A Final: 1 Australia 7:26.15, 2 New Zealand 7:27.57, 3 Britain 7:40.51; Ireland (A Crowley, M Dukarska) 7:50.08.

Lightweight Double Sculls - B Final (places 7 to 12): 6 Ireland (L Heaphy, D Walsh) 7:45.98.

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: Paul O'Donovan and Fintan McCarthy brought the tally of Ireland A Finalists at the World Cup Regatta in Rotterdam to four with a second-placed finish in their semi-final. Germany's Jason Osborne and Jonathan Rommelmann, racing in the favoured lane one were the dominant crew, but the new Ireland lightweight double finished fast, coming to just about a length on the line.

The Ireland women's lightweight double were out in lane six in the revised lane draw in their semi and finished sixth. Lydia Heaphy and Denise Walsh are set for a B Final.

World Cup Regatta, Rotterdam, Day Two (Irish interest; morning session)

Men

Double Sculls - Semi-Final Two (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Ireland (P Doyle, R Byrne) 6:33.47, 2 Germany 6:36.17, 3 Australia One 6:38.62

Lightweight Double Sculls - Semi-Final Two (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Germany One 6:42.04, 2 Ireland (F McCarthy, P O'Donovan) 6:43.70, 3 Australia 6:50.80.

Lightweight Single Sculls - Semi-Final Two (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Slovenia 7:22.30, 2 3 Ireland One (G O'Donovan) 7:25.89, 3 Switzerland 7:27.70; 4 Ireland Two (J McCarthy) 7:34.79.

Women

Pair - Semi-Final One (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Romania One 7:34.61, 2 Ireland (A Crowley, M Dukarska) 7:37.87, 3 Spain 7:39.49.

Lightweight Double Sculls - Semi-Final Two (First Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 6 Ireland (L Heaphy, D Walsh) 7:49.87.

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: Paul O'Donovan and Fintan McCarthy hit the right mark in their first competitive race as the new Ireland lightweight double. At the World Cup Regatta in Rotterdam, they finished .39 seconds ahead of Australia in their time trial and qualified directly for the semi-finals.

The heats were run on a time trial basis as the regatta was buffeted by a storm and racing had to be delayed and the programme altered.

All six Ireland crews made it straight through in the changed system. The Ireland men's double of Philip Doyle and Ronan Byrne posted the best time in their heat, just ahead of Switzerland, who also qualified.

Aileen Crowley and Monika Dukarska also made it straight through. The Ireland pair finished second in their time trial to the outstanding New Zealand crew of Kerri Gowler and Grace Prendergast.

Jake McCarthy and Gary O'Donovan both qualified from their heats of the lightweight single sculls. McCarthy took second and O'Donovan third.

The one Irish crew which fell outside automatic qualification was the lightweight women's double of Lydia Heaphy and Denise Walsh. They finished fourth, but made it through as one of the fastest losers.

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: Paul O'Donovan won his semi-final after another exciting tussle and the Ireland lightweight pair also qualified for their A Final at the World Rowing Championships in Rotterdam today.

 Lightweight sculler O'Donovan put in a remarkable middle third of the race to move from sixth to second in very hot conditions . He then pushed for the lead, but Rajko Hrvat of Slovenia was a dogged opponent. The two raced to the line - O'Donovan won by just over half a second.

 Mark O'Donovan and Shane O'Driscoll reached their A Final by taking second. They raced France for most of the 2,000 metres and were still in touch at the end.

World Rowing Championships, Rotterdam (Irish interest; selected results)

Men

Lightweight Pair A/B Semi-Final Two (Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 France 6:30.56, 2 Ireland (M O'Donovan, S O'Driscoll) 6:32.18, 3 United States 6:33.19; 4 Brazil 6:35.07, 5 Italy 6:37.34, 6 Spain 6:40.82.

Lightweight Single Sculls - A/B Semi-Final One (Three to A Final; rest to B Final): 1 Ireland (P O'Donovan) 6:51.71, 2 Slovenia 6:52.31, 3 Germany 6:52.32; 4 Spain 6:53.21, 6 Italy 7:17.33. 

Under-23 Quadruple Sculls - B Final (Places 7 to 12): 1 Russia 5:54.0; 6 Ireland (D Buckley, J Casey, P Boomer, S McKeown) 6:01.78.

   

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: Paul O’Donovan won his heat with a dominant performance at the World Rowing Championships in Rotterdam today. The Ireland lightweight single sculler made light of the difficult condtions and left the rest of the field behind - Japan’s Yuki Ikeda, in second, was over five seconds behind the UCD clubman. O’Donovan will now have a good lane draw in the quarter-final.

World Rowing Championships, Rotterdam (Selected Results; Irish interest)

Men

Lightweight Single Sculls - Heat Three (Four to Quarter-Finals; rest to Repechages): 1 Ireland (P O’Donovan) 7:11.73, 2 Japan 7:16.87

3 Serbia 7:19.70, 4 China 7:23.04.  

Under-23 Quadruple - Repechage One (Three to A/B Semi-Finals; rest to C Final): 1 Britain 5:54.05, 2 Russia 5:56.18, 3 Ireland (D Buckley, J Casey, P Boomer, S McKeown) 5:57.67.

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: A stirring finish saw the Ireland lightweight quadruple elbow their way into the semi-final of the World Under-23 Championships in Rotterdam today. The young crew of Fintan McCarthy, Shane O'Connell, Stephen O'Connor and Colm Hennessy clung on to third behind impressive Germany and Sweden despite a big challenge by Canada.

World Rowing Championships, Rotterdam (Selected Results; Irish interest)

Men

Under-23 Lightweight Pair - Heat Two (First Three to A/B Semi-Final; rest to Repechages): 1 Turkey 6:39.80, 2 Greece 6:40.70, 3 Ireland (S Mulvaney, D O’Malley) 6:45.09.  

Under-23 Quadruple - Heat Three (First two A/B Semi-Final; rest to Repechages) 1 Australia 5:52.01, 2 Italy 5:53.31; 5 Ireland (D Buckley, J Casey, P Boomer, S McKeown) 6:15.47.

Under-23 Lightweight Quadruple - Heat One (First Three to A/B Semi-Finals; rest to Repechages): 1 Germany 6:10.05, 2 Sweden 6:11.08, 3 Ireland (F McCarthy, S O'Connell, S O'Connor, C Hennessy) 6:12.63.

Published in Rowing

# Rowing: Ireland’s campaign at the World Championships in Rotterdam, which feature senior, under-23 and junior events, started well this morning. The Ireland Under-23 lightweight pair of David O’Malley and Shane Mulvaney secured a semi-final place. Greece and Turkey swapped places ahead of them, but the Ireland crew nailed down third and direct qualification. Germany struggled and could only take fourth and a repechage place. Turkey passed Greece before the line.

World Rowing Championships, Rotterdam (Selected Results; Irish interest)

Men

Under-23 Lightweight Pair - Heat Two (First Three to A/B Semi-Final; rest to Repechages): 1 Turkey 6:39.80, 2 Greece 6:40.70, 3 Ireland (S Mulvaney, D O’Malley) 6:45.09.  

Published in Rowing

#Surfing - Surfing on the canals of the Netherlands? It could be a reality if Rotterdam's plans come to fruition, as Mail Online reports.

The Dutch port city's Steigersgracht Canal is the location for RiF010, a water-purification scheme that will create a five-foot wave in the waterway that might well be perfect for 'hanging ten' in the heart of the retail district.

And not only will the wave pool be an attraction for watersport enthusiasts, it's also expected to generate electricity for the locality, making it a proper green energy scheme too.

Mail Online has more on the story HERE.

Published in Surfing
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For all you need on the Marine Environment - covering the latest news and updates on marine science and wildlife, weather and climate, power from the sea and Ireland's coastal regions and communities - the place to be is Afloat.ie.

Coastal Notes

The Coastal Notes category covers a broad range of stories, events and developments that have an impact on Ireland's coastal regions and communities, whose lives and livelihoods are directly linked with the sea and Ireland's coastal waters.

Topics covered in Coastal Notes can be as varied as the rare finding of sea-life creatures, an historic shipwreck with secrets to tell, or even a trawler's net caught hauling much more than just fish.

Other angles focusing the attention of Coastal Notes are Ireland's maritime museums, which are of national importance to maintaining access and knowledge of our nautical heritage, and those who harvest the sea using small boats based in harbours where infrastructure and safety pose an issue, plying their trade along the rugged wild western seaboard.

Coastal Notes tells the stories that are arguably as varied as the environment they come from, and which shape people's interaction with the natural world and our relationship with the sea.

Marine Wildlife

One of the greatest memories of any day spent boating around the Irish coast is an encounter with Marine Wildlife. It's a thrill for young and old to witness seabirds, seals, dolphins and whales right there in their own habitat. And as boaters fortunate enough to have experienced it will testify, even spotting a distant dorsal fin can be the highlight of any day afloat. Was that a porpoise? Was it a whale? No matter how brief the glimpse, it's a privilege to share the seas with Irish marine wildlife.

Thanks to our location in the North Atlantic, there appears to be no shortage of marine life to observe. From whales to dolphins, seals, sharks and other ocean animals, the Marine Wildlife category documents the most interesting accounts around our shores. And we're keen to receive your observations, your photos, links and video clips, too!

Also valuable is the unique perspective of all those who go afloat, from coastal sailing to sea angling to inshore kayaking to offshore yacht racing, as what they encounter can be of great importance to organisations such as the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG). Thanks to their work we now know we share the seas with dozens of species who also call Ireland home. But as impressive as the list is, the experts believe there are still gaps in our knowledge. Next time you are out on the ocean waves, keep a sharp look out!

Weather

As an island in the North Atlantic, Ireland's fate is decided by Weather more so than many other European countries. When storm-force winds race across the Irish Sea, ferry and shipping services are cut off, disrupting our economy. When swollen waves crash on our shores, communities are flooded and fishermen brace for impact - both to their vessels and to their livelihoods.

Keeping abreast of the weather, therefore, is as important to leisure cruisers and fishing crews alike - for whom a small craft warning can mean the difference between life and death - as it is to the communities lining the coast, where timely weather alerts can help protect homes and lives.

Weather affects us all, and Afloat.ie will keep you informed on the hows and the whys.

Marine Science

Perhaps it's the work of the Irish research vessels RV Celtic Explorer and RV Celtic Voyager out in the Atlantic Ocean that best highlights the essential nature of Marine Science for the future growth of Ireland's emerging 'blue economy'.

From marine research to development and sustainable management, Ireland is developing a strong and well-deserved reputation as an emerging centre of excellence. Whether it's Wavebob ocean energy technology to aquaculture to weather buoys and oil exploration, the Marine Science category documents the work of Irish marine scientists and researchers and how they have secured prominent roles in many European and international marine science bodies.

Power From The Sea

The message from the experts is clear: offshore wind and wave energy is the future. And as Ireland looks towards the potential of the renewable energy sector, generating Power From The Sea will become a greater priority in the State's 'blue growth' strategy.

Developments and activities in existing and planned projects in the pipeline from the wind and wave renewables sector, and those of the energy exploration industry, point to the future of energy requirements for the whole world, not just in Ireland. And that's not to mention the supplementary industries that sea power projects can support in coastal communities.

Irish ports are already in a good position to capitalise on investments in offshore renewable energy services. And Power From The Sea can even be good for marine wildlife if done properly.

Aside from the green sector, our coastal waters also hold a wealth of oil and gas resources that numerous prospectors are hoping to exploit, even if people in coastal and island areas are as yet unsure of the potential benefits or pitfalls for their communities.

Changing Ocean Climate

Our ocean and climate are inextricably linked - the ocean plays a crucial role in the global climate system in a number of ways. These include absorbing excess heat from the atmosphere and absorbing 30 per cent of the carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere by human activity. But our marine ecosystems are coming under increasing pressure due to climate change.

The Marine Institute, with its national and international partners, works to observe and understand how our ocean is changing and analyses, models and projects the impacts of our changing oceans. Advice and forecasting projections of our changing oceans and climate are essential to create effective policies and management decisions to safeguard our ocean.

Dr Paul Connolly, CEO of the Marine Institute, said, “Our ocean is fundamental to life on earth and affects so many facets of our everyday activities. One of the greatest challenges we face as a society is that of our changing climate. The strong international collaborations that the Marine Institute has built up over decades facilitates a shared focusing on our changing ocean climate and developing new and enhanced ways of monitoring it and tracking changes over time.

“Our knowledge and services help us to observe these patterns of change and identify the steps to safeguard our marine ecosystems for future generations.”

The Marine Institute’s annual ocean climate research survey, which has been running since 2004, facilitates long term monitoring of the deep water environment to the west of Ireland. This repeat survey, which takes place on board RV Celtic Explorer, enables scientists to establish baseline oceanic conditions in Irish waters that can be used as a benchmark for future changes.

Scientists collect data on temperature, salinity, water currents, oxygen and carbon dioxide in the Atlantic Ocean. This high quality oceanographic data contributes to the Atlantic Ocean Observing System. Physical oceanographic data from the survey is submitted to the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) and, in addition, the survey contributes to national research such as the VOCAB ocean acidification and biogeochemistry project, the ‘Clean Atlantic’ project on marine litter and the A4 marine climate change project.

Dr Caroline Cusack, who co-ordinates scientific activities on board the RV Celtic Explorer for the annual survey, said, “The generation of long-term series to monitor ocean climate is vital to allow us understand the likely impact of future changes in ocean climate on ecosystems and other marine resources.”

Other activities during the survey in 2019 included the deployment of oceanographic gliders, two Argo floats (Ireland’s contribution to EuroArgo) and four surface drifters (Interreg Atlantic Area Clean Atlantic project). The new Argo floats have the capacity to measure dissolved ocean and biogeochemical parameters from the ocean surface down to a depth of 2,000 metres continuously for up to four years, providing important information as to the health of our oceans.

During the 2019 survey, the RV Celtic Explorer retrieved a string of oceanographic sensors from the deep ocean at an adjacent subsurface moored station and deployed a replacement M6 weather buoy, as part of the Irish Marine Data Buoy Observation Network (IMDBON).

Funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the IMDBON is managed by the Marine Institute in collaboration with Met Éireann and is designed to improve weather forecasts and safety at sea around Ireland. The data buoys have instruments which collect weather and ocean data including wind speed and direction, pressure, air and sea surface temperature and wave statistics. This data provides vital information for weather forecasts, shipping bulletins, gale and swell warnings as well as data for general public information and research.

“It is only in the last 20 years, meteorologists and climatologists have really began to understood the pivotal role the ocean plays in determining our climate and weather,” said Evelyn Cusack, Head of Forecasting at Met Éireann. “The real-time information provided by the Irish data buoy network is particularly important for our mariners and rescue services. The M6 data buoy in the Atlantic provides vital information on swell waves generated by Atlantic storms. Even though the weather and winds may be calm around our shores, there could be some very high swells coming in from Atlantic storms.”