This specialist symposium is organised under the auspices of the agreement signed in 2005 between the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (DNVA) and the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) to promote increased collaboration between the two national academies and their respective research communities. The symposium will reflect the high level of current research activity in waves and marine hydrodynamics in universities in Norway and Scotland, as well as existing collaborations in these areas between research groups in the two countries.

The 2025 symposium will follow the pattern of the previous 7 DNVA-RSE Norway-Scotland Symposia held alternately in Oslo (2008, 2013, 2017, 2023) and Edinburgh (2010, 2015, 2019). Surface and internal waves will remain the core focus of the programme but additional sessions will be included to reflect emerging research interests and national priorities.

The symposium typically attracts between 50 and 60 participants (with about 30 presentations) from the fields of fluid mechanics, coastal and offshore engineering, physical oceanography, applied mathematics and mechanics, environmental science, aquaculture, offshore renewable energy, wave-structure interaction and civil engineering.

The scientific programme consists of invited presentations reporting recent advances in water wave and marine hydrodynamics research from Norwegian and Scottish groups, together with additional participation of invited world experts from the UK, Western Europe, North America, and Australia to ensure international context and calibration.

The symposium series has an excellent track record in initiating, establishing and strengthening research collaborations between Norwegian and Scottish groups and international partners and has led to joint research grants and extensive joint publications in internationally-leading scientific journals.

The themes for the 2025 symposium are as follows:

A: Surface water waves, including extreme and rogue waves, 3-D waves

B: Internal solitary waves in stratified coastal, estuarine and offshore waters

C: Use of robotics and autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) for data acquisition in coastal and oceanic waters

D: Mixing and water column modification (currents, sediments, stratification) by large arrays of offshore wind monopiles

E: Mixing and circulation in fjords and sea lochs and semi-enclosed waters

F: Ocean circulation, with particular focus on high latitude (e.g Arctic) ocean dynamics, ice melting processes (including coastal glaciers) and climate change

The main aims of the Symposium will be (i) to describe the present scope of wave and marine hydrodynamics research activity in the individual countries, (ii) to inform the Norwegian and Scottish research communities of recent international advances in these topics, (iii) to explore new bi- or multi-lateral collaborative research projects involving Norwegian and Scottish scientists, (iii) to extend and strengthen existing cross-national collaborations of this kind, (iv) to identify new hydrodynamics research problems that are relevant in Norway and Scotland as well as internationally and (v) to promote, where possible, the appropriate transfer of academic research advances to the industrial sector.

Participation in the symposium is open to all, subject to capacity limitations of the venue. Expressions of interest in attending/participating in the Symposium should be addressed in the first instance to p.a.davies@dundee.ac.uk as soon as possible. In cases where funding cannot be provided for participants, a registration fee will be levied to cover the costs of meals and refreshments at the symposium (please see the registration page for more information).