SMHI, the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrographical Institute, operates under the auspecies of the Swedish Ministry of Environment. SMHI comprises expertise within the research fields of meteorology, hydrology and oceanography. The Research unit is divided into four groups: Meteorological analyses and forecasting, Atmospheric research, Oceanography and Hydrology. Environmental research spans over all the disciplines. A separate Research unit for regional climate modelling, the Rossby Centre, was established at SMHI in autumn 1997.
The oceanographic research is divided into:
- Marine data analysis
- Marin remote sensing. The focus is on SAR as a tool for sea ice mapping in the Baltic Sea and in the Arctic. Methods for algae bloom detection is also under study to obtain an early warning system. Sea surface temperature is another parameter of interest for models and mapping.
- Process-oriented modelling, both physical and biogeochemical. The focus is on long-term changes of hydrography and some biological parameters in the seas surrounding Sweden.
- Three-dimensional ocean modelling
SMHI is Sweden’s largest producer of physical and chemical oceanographic data and also a major producer of marine biological data.
From top left and clockwise: Buoy east of Huvudskär in the Baltic Sea. In the background, a vessel from the Swedish Coast guard (credit: Per Olsson / SMHI); the mareograph at Skeppsholmen in Stockholm, established 1889 (credit: Thomas Hammarklint / SMHI); expeditions in the Baltic (credit: Bengt Karlson)
