ASTARTE - Assessment, STrategy And Risk Reduction for Tsunamis in Europe

Project details

Total cost: EUR 7 884 882
EU contribution: EUR 5 999 678
Coordinated in:Portugal
Subprogramme: ENV.2013.6.4-3 - Coasts at threat in Europe: tsunamis and climate-related risks
Call for proposal: FP7-ENV-2013-two-stage
Funding scheme: CP - Collaborative project (generic)

Objective

The NEAM (North East Atlantic, Mediterranean and Adjacent Seas) region of IOC/UNESCO is known to be exposed to tsunamis and, like other regions of the world, faces increasing levels of risk due to i) continuous development of coastal areas with critical infrastructure, and ii) year-round presence of millions of tourists.

In recent years, European researchers have greatly advanced knowledge of tsunami hazards and implementation of operational infrastructure, such as creation of a regional system of candidate tsunami-watch providers (CTWP) and national tsunami warning centers (NTWC). However, significant gaps remain and more effort is needed.

ASTARTE (Assessment STrategy And Risk for Tsunami in Europe) aims to develop a comprehensive strategy to mitigate tsunami impact in this region. To achieve this goal, an interdisciplinary consortium has been assembled. It includes all CTWPs of NEAM and expert institutions across Europe and worldwide.

ASTARTE will improve i) basic knowledge of tsunami generation and recurrence going beyond simple catalogues, with novel empirical data and new statistical analyses for assessing long-term recurrence and hazards of large events in sensitive areas of NEAM, ii) numerical techniques for tsunami simulation, with focus on real-time codes and novel statistical emulation approaches, and iii) methods for assessment of hazard, vulnerability, and risk.

ASTARTE will also provide i) guidelines for tsunami Eurocodes,ii) better tools for forecast and warning for CTWPs and NTWCs, and iii) guidelines for decision makers to increase sustainability and resilience of coastal communities. In summary, ASTARTE will develop basic scientific and technical elements allowing for a significant enhancement of the Tsunami Warning System in the NEAM region in terms of monitoring, early warning and forecast, governance and resilience.

Overall, this will lead to the goal of the European/NEAM Horizon 2020 strategy: to foster tsunami resilient communities.

Coordinator

INSTITUTO PORTUGUES DO MAR E DA ATMOSFERA IPPortugal

Participants

FUNDACAO DA FACULDADE DE CIENCIAS DA UNIVERSIDADE DE LISBOA Portugal
MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY Turkey
BOGAZICI UNIVERSITESI Turkey
COMMISSARIAT A L ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES France
CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE France
ALMA MATER STUDIORUM-UNIVERSITA DI BOLOGNA Italy
ISTITUTO NAZIONALE DI GEOFISICA E VULCANOLOGIA Italy
UNIVERSIDAD DE CANTABRIA Spain
UNIVERSITAT DE BARCELONA Spain
TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF CRETE Greece
NATIONAL OBSERVATORY OF ATHENS Greece
UNIVERSITAET HAMBURG Germany
HELMHOLTZ-ZENTRUM POTSDAM DEUTSCHES GEOFORSCHUNGSZENTRUM Germany
UNIVERSITAET BREMEN Germany
STIFTELSEN NORGES GEOTEKNISKE INSTITUTT Norway
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN, NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND, DUBLIN Ireland
NATURAL ENVIRONMENT RESEARCH COUNCIL United Kingdom
DANMARKS TEKNISKE UNIVERSITET Denmark
INSTITUTUL NATIONAL DE CERCETARE-DEZVOLTARE PENTRU FIZICA PAMANTULUI Romania
SPECIAL RESEARCH BUREAU FOR AUTOMATION OF MARINE RESEARCHES FAR EAST BRANCH RUSSIAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES Russia
CENTRE NATIONAL POUR LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE ET TECHNIQUE Morocco
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE United States
PORT AND AIRPORT RESEARCH INSTITUTE Japan
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA United States
UNIVERSITY OF TOKYO