The SONATINA program is intended for researchers who have recently obtained a PhD degree. In the recently concluded competition, 52 scientists received funding with a total value of almost PLN 34 million. The awarded grants will allow the winners to conduct better researches on various issues from many fields of science. One of them is discoveries related to the Baltic Sea area and the processes in it. 

Dr Łukasz Janowski received over 756 thousand PLN for the project “Pioneering exploration of the Bay of Puck on the basis of high-resolution aerial and acoustic remote sensing”. The planned research is aimed at creating the first high-resolution Digital Terrain Model (DTM).

The aim of the project is not only to present a numerical representation of the bottom of the Bay of Puck, but also to discover its underwater cultural heritage. There is a high probability that there are remnants of the old settlements built 7000 years ago.

Dr Michał Czub will check the current effects of chemical weapons being deposited on the seabed in the project entitled “Ecological Consequences of Chemical Weapons Dumping in the Baltic Sea”.

It is estimated that as much as 50,000 tons of chemical weapons were dumped in the Baltic Sea alone, which could contain as much as 15,000 tons of Warfare Agents.