earth science

Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands

Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands rather than just read about it. In short: The Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands (Plataforma Oceánica de Canarias, PLOCAN) is a singular scientific and technological infrastructure (ICTS) aimed to accelerate the development of knowledge and technologies for the responsible and sustainable use of the ocean, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and strategy of Blue Growth Strategy established by the European Union. It has been par…

Key takeaways

Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands (Plataforma Oceánica de Canarias, PLOCAN) is a singular scientific and technological infrastructure (ICTS) aimed to accelerate the development of knowledge and technologies for the responsible and sustainable use of the ocean, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and strategy of Blue Growth Strategy established by the European Union. It has been partially co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) under the ERDF Operational Programme for the Canary Islands 2007-2013 within Axis 1 "Development of the Knowledge Economy", priority theme 02, with a co-financing rate of 85%. PLOCAN is financed and managed by a consortium comprising 50% contributions from the Government of the Canary Islands and the Spanish National Government (Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities).

Infrastructures PLOCAN offers land-based and sea-based novel infrastructures to promote long-term observation and sustainability of the ocean, providing a cost-effective combination of services, such as observatories, a test site, a base for marine vehicles, training and an innovation hub. PLOCAN is able to provide access and multidisciplinary logistic support through its onshore facility and two marine test sites (Taliarte harbor and offshore). The facility and test sites are located in the NE coast of Gran Canaria Island, and the platform is integrated in the offshore test site.

The platform The main aim of the PLOCAN consortium is the construction and operation of a fixed offshore platform that will underpin national research and technological development capacities at the cutting edge of knowledge and within the framework of international competitiveness. The floating platform is located about 1.3 miles (2.1 km; 1.1 nmi) east of Piedra Santa, Jinámar, Gran Canaria, and was anchored in place in November 2016 The platform is located both close to the coast and near the edge of the continental shelf, in shallow waters (30 meters depth). It has a net surface of around 2,500 m2 of research capacity, space for laboratories, instrumented containers and capacity to accommodate researchers distributed in a multi-story building with a main dock of 1,000 m2.

Onshore facility The onshore testing facility has dedicated 400 m2 equipped workshops for electronics and mechanical integration, repairs, storage and logistics, including a wet-lab with a testing pool with target seawater. A dedicated control room for piloting and related issues is also available.

Marine test sites (harbor and offshore) The harbor testing facility is located very close to the onshore facility (just a few meters with a direct view between both) and has clear and calm waters with maximum depths of 8 m. It is an optimal place for the early sea trials. The PLOCAN offshore test site area is 23 km2, located 3 nautical miles from the harbour testing area and also quite near to the major harbor of Gran Canaria Island (Las Palmas/ Port). The area offers progressive depths from shore up to 600 m (deeper upon request) dedicated to study the behaviour and efficiency of different types of maritime devices and technologies and contributing to speed up the process of their introduction into the market. The marine area of PLOCAN test site was comprehensively studied with a view of offering an optimal space in terms of logistics, supported infrastructures and grid connection. In addition, the area has excellent environmental conditions facilitating 9 to 12 months of operational window and optimal wind and wave energy resources for testing/demonstration operations, which range from 300-400 W/m2 for wind power density and from 4 to 8 Kw/m of wave power.

Electrical and Communications Grid Infrastructure (IECOM) The evacuation of the electricity produced during experimental assays in PLOCAN Marine Test Site is done through its Electrical and Communication grid Infrastructure (IECOM). The IECOM will be operational in 2017 and it will be composed of 2 main modules, each with 5 MW of electricity evacuation capacity. Module 1 will be dedicated to wave energy converter demonstrators, with 5 positions of 1 MW each. Module 2 will be dedicated to offshore wind technologies with one position of 5 MW. Regular sea-operations are covered by PLOCAN's own boats as part of the main equipment available.

Ocean Observing systems A fleet of unmanned marine vehicles for survey and work applications up to 1,000 m and moored buoys suited with meteorological and oceanographic sensors are available in order to cover real-time monitoring needs in the area.

Projects PLOCAN is involved in European and national R&D&I projects with the objective of enabling research and scientific and technological development of maritime and marine sciences. Finished and ongoing projects can be consulted in a specific section of the PLOCAN webpage. PivotBuoy received €4m EU funding in 2019 to install a 225 kW downwind floating wind turbine at PLOCAN. In 2024, WavePiston installed their wave energy convertor at PLOCAN. This can both provide power and desalinated water.

References

External links Official Website: http://www.plocan.eu/index.php/en/ Meril: http://portal.meril.eu/converis-esf/publicweb/research_infrastructure/2021 Tethys: https://web.archive.org/web/20131212171545/https://mhk.pnnl.gov/wiki/index.php/Marine_Test_Site_for_Ocean_Energy_Converters Spanish Network of ICTS: http://www.idi.mineco.gob.es/portal/site/MICINN/menuitem.26172fcf4eb029fa6ec7da6901432ea0/?vgnextoid=05cf097c526b4410VgnVCM1000001d04140aRCRD&lang_choosen=en (English) General overview: http://smartocean.org/Portals/2/FORUM/Presentations/SmartOcean%20Forum%202013%20-%20Ayoze%20Castro%20-%20PLOCAN%20-%20An%20Atlantic%20Multipurpose%20Platform%20and%20Marine%20Test%20Site%20Fostering%20Research%20and%20Innovation.pdf

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands

In research: Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Oceanographic organizations, Offshore test sites, Organisations based in the Canary Islands, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands in simple terms?

Why does Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands.