This datasets is a summary of the CTD profiles measured with the RV Belgica. It provides general meta-information such as the campaign code, the date of measurement and the geographical information. An important information is the profile quality flag that describes the validity of the data. A quality flag = 2 means the data is generally good although some outliers can still be present. A quality flag = 4 means the data should not be trusted. 1 meter binned data can be download on the SeaDataNet CDI portal (enter the cruise_id in the search bar) ONLY for the good quality profiles. Full acquisition frequency datasets are available on request to BMDC.

UNDER EMBARGO - This dataset contains seasonal physiological measurements from controlled laboratory experiments on two dominant suspension-feeding species expected to colonise floating offshore structures: the blue mussel (Mytilus edulis; AphiaID 140480) and the wrinkled barnacle (Balanus crenatus; AphiaID 106215). The measured parameters include clearance rates, respiration rates, faecal pellet production rates, and faecal pellet sinking velocities. Mussels were collected from an aquaculture longline at the Westdiep SeaFarm, while barnacles were manually retrieved from the intertidal beachhead at Raversijde (Oostende, Belgium). All experiments were conducted using natural seawater collected from offshore sites in the Belgian part of the North Sea. Measurements were repeated across multiple seasons to capture temporal variability in physiological performance. The dataset was produced within the SWiM and EcoMPV projects and is suitable for reuse in ecosystem and biogeochemical modelling, including simulations of phytoplankton dynamics associated with large-scale offshore marine photovoltaic (MPV) developments.

The climatological network contains about 200 stations spread over the whole country. It consists of voluntary observers recruited by the RMI, professional observers of Skeyes (civil aviation) or the Air Force (military aviation) and civil servants of the state, communities or private companies. The observers measure the amount of rain fallen in the last 24 hours in the pluviometer of the RMI every morning at 8 o‘clock. In more than half of the stations the extreme air temperatures are also recorded by reading the maximum and minimum temperature in a standardized weather shelter. The observers send their observations either on a  daily or on a monthly basis to RMI. This product is not publicly available yet.

The composite is produced every 5 minutes using the reflectivity data from the Wideumont and Jabbeke weather radars. This product is not publicly available yet.

A climate normal is an average over a 30-years period. The period 1981-2010 is the current reference period recommended by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). Recent climate normals are available for any locations in Belgium and several parameters including air temperature, precipitations and solar radiation. Climate normals for the reference period 1981-2010 are available for air temperature, precipitation and derived parameters (e.g., annual number of summer days, annual number of precipitation days, etc.). For solar radiation, the reference period had to be adjusted to 1984-2013 because of data availability. These climate normals are available as maps and as table for each Belgian municipality.

Annual temperature extremes given in number of days: 1/ Total number of heatwaves occurring once in 20 years; 2/ Maximum length of the heatwaves occurring once in 20 years; 3/ Hot days: Mean annual number of days with maximum temperature > 25°C; 4/ Tropical days: Mean annual number of days with maximum temperature > 30°C; 5/ Frost days: Mean annual number of days with minimum temperature < 0°C. Heatwaves are defined according to the Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium when the maximum temperature in Uccle is >= 25°C during at least 5 consecutive days, during which at least 3 days the maximum temperature is >= 30°C. The temperature extremes are available for the future target year 2085, which corresponds to the middle of the 30-year period 2071-2100, and for mean and high impact scenarios corresponding respectively to the 50th and 95th percentiles of the change factors.

Annual, summer and winter mean temperature given in °C. The temperature fields are available for the future target year 2085, which corresponds to the middle of the 30-year period 2071-2100, and for mean and high impact scenarios corresponding respectively to the 50th and 95th percentiles of the change factors.

Annual and seasonal precipitation indices given in number of days: 1/ Wet days: Number of days with precipitation > 0.1 mm/day for winter, autumn, spring, summer; 2/ Dry days: Number of days with precipitation < 0.1 mm/day for winter, autumn, spring, summer; 3/ Average length of dry spells: Mean duration of minimum three consecutive days with precipitation < 0.1 mm/day; 4/ Maximum length of dry spells: Longest period of minimum three consecutive days with precipitation < 0.1 mm/day, occurring once in 20 years. The precipitation indices are available for the present target year 1975, which corresponds to the middle of the 30-year period 1961-1990.

Summer and winter mean wind speed given in m/s. The wind speed fields are available for the present target year 1975, which corresponds to the middle of the 30-year period 1961-1990.