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Weather monitoring centre detected 964 atmospheric electromagnetic discharges on 7 June!

From 7th to 9th June, the Aver-o-Mar School Group’s weather monitoring centre detected close to 1,000 atmospheric electromagnetic discharges, more precisely 964 occurrences, between 4pm and 9.04pm on the 7th, when the peak was reached.

In the tables below you can see the type of warning issued by the station.

An electromagnetic anomaly detected in the context of meteorology refers to an unexpected deviation or change in the characteristics of the electromagnetic fields that can be measured in the atmosphere. These anomalies can be indicative of various meteorological or geophysical situations or phenomena. Electromagnetic anomalies can occur before natural events, such as storms, and these changes in

the electromagnetic fields can be indicative of underlying processes that are developing, such as changes in the electrical charge of the atmosphere.

During the formation of storms, there is intense electrical activity that can generate anomalies in the electromagnetic fields, and are therefore the subject of research and monitoring. In fact, electromagnetic anomalies are monitored in order to better predict and understand meteorological and geophysical phenomena. In terms of detection techniques, these include Radio Frequency equipment, which detects changes in radio frequencies that may indicate anomalous electromagnetic activity.

In our case, we’ve been detecting an increase in the quantity and frequency of these anomalies at the weather station, which are far removed from the normal defined as a baseline for perfect weather conditions (sunny day, no approaching storms or other meteorological or geophysical phenomena).

The Grouping’s station has a sensor, the first of its kind in the region, which detected the intensity and distance of the events, as can be seen in the photos below. The installation of two more sensors, in different locations, is being considered, in order to better triangulate the signal and increase accuracy in identifying the location. The lightning sensor uses AMS’s innovative AS3935 Franklin IC and a dedicated Coilcraft MA5532-AE antenna to detect the distance, intensity and frequency of lightning strikes within a radius of 40 kilometres, both indoors and outdoors.

Cover image source: Notícias de Coimbra newspaper

Frightening! The number of lightning strikes recorded in Portugal in the last 24 hours – Notícias de Coimbra (noticiasdecoimbra.pt)

Best of luck Matilde!!!

Our 9th grade student Matilde Salgado has been in Aveiro since yesterday, at the Dr Mário Sacramento Secondary School, representing the school and Póvoa de Varzim in the final phase of the 11th Portuguese Language Olympics.

Today, Matilde will take part in the individual poetry competition (‘Fonte das palavras’) this afternoon, after having had a sailing experience, which will be followed by a soft egg workshop.

On Saturday there will be a paired competition (‘debate and discussion of ideas’), and the awards ceremony will take place at 4pm after the jury’s deliberation.

The Aver-o-Mar school community is with Matilde Salgado in this important endeavour, and the school board would like to thank her teachers Fátima Cunha and Maria José Crasto, who accompanied her to her accommodation on Thursday, as well as her parents, who will be present at the prize-giving ceremony and allowed her to be involved.

Thanks to everyone and congratulations, Matilde, on your journey and commitment.

Previous publication: Matilde Salgado in the final round of the XI Portuguese Language Olympics (Aveiro) – Agrupamento de Escolas Aver o Mar (aeaveromar.pt)

Group wins ‘2022/23 SeguraNet Challenges’

Agrupamento de Escolas de Aver-o-Mar was the winner of the ‘Desafios SeguraNet 2022/23’ initiative, and the diplomas were awarded to the winning schools yesterday, 15 May, in Santarém. This initiative, promoted by the Directorate-General for Education through the SeguraNet Awareness Centre, was part of the National Meeting on Digital Citizenship – SeguraNet I Twenty Years of Safe Surfing, which took place at the premises of the Escola Superior Agrária de Santarém (ESAS).

Congratulations to everyone involved in the various digital initiatives developed by the school, which has won yet another national award. It is gratifying to see this recognition of the practices of teachers, students, parents/guardians and staff in various contexts!

WE ARE NOMINEES for the Energy Up Prize

The news received by email on 13 May, addressed to the coordinator of the application, António Cunha, couldn’t have made us happier: ‘It is with great enthusiasm that we announce that your school is one of the finalists in the Energy Up Prize, so we congratulate you once again and extend this invitation!’

Thus, for the third year running, the school will be one of the 10 finalists in this competition, with more than 80 projects having taken part in this year’s edition, as can be read in the email received from the organisers, the Galp Foundation: ‘The Energy Up Prize distinguishes schools that have developed exemplary projects in the area of energy transition, sustainable mobility and more efficient energy consumption over the last 5 years. In the 4th edition we received over 80 applications from all over the country, from which 10 finalist projects were chosen.’

The group will now be travelling to Lisbon, where they will come away with one of the three prizes in their category (€2,000 for 1st place and €1,000 for 2nd and 3rd place) or, perhaps, the final grand prize, worth up to €20,000 (for the installation of solar panels). The Energy UP Awards ceremony will take place on 29 May at 10am at the Pavilhão do Conhecimento in Lisbon, and a minimum prize of €1,000 is guaranteed!!!

The Energy Up Award is an integral part of the Future Up Education Programme, which has the institutional support of the Directorate-General for Education (DGE), the Directorate-General for Energy and Geology (DGEG), the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) and the Energy Agency (ADENE). In the 2022-2024 biennium, it will be co-financed by the Energy Services Regulatory Authority (ERSE), as part of the Plan to Promote Efficiency in Energy Consumption. This Galp Foundation programme has already mobilised 21,000 schools across the country, mainland Portugal and the islands, impacting more than 2.2 million teachers and students.

The school group submitted the Apolo Up project to the competition (an evolution of previous projects, which were developed using funds won in previous editions), in an application drawn up by the director, Carlos Gomes de Sá, the social worker, Andreia

Teixeira, with António Cunha as head of the Robotics Club, as well as the involvement of dozens of students and teachers directly involved in the project, whose final video can be seen at the following link: https://youtu.be/0hBS6RuWqm8.

According to the evidence presented, the project highlights the work carried out on the automation of Block E, the replacement of exterior lighting and control clocks, the meteorological station and seismic station and their connection to the community, the automation of the sustainable greenhouse, the repair of household appliances and electronic equipment (TARDE), the development of information panels for public transport, without neglecting the frequent and impactful environmental awareness actions, including waste, protection of the sea and the collection of bottle tops, among others.

Congratulations to the community of Aver-o-Mar on this national award, and we look forward to seeing the final results on the afternoon of 29 May!

Algarve’s ‘Development Groups – Peer Innovation’ meets ‘Aver-o-Mundo’

The ‘Aver-o-Mundo’ project, which is being developed in our school, was presented at a working session in the Algarve on 8 May, as part of the Development Groups – Peer Innovation.

This action is an initiative of the Algarve Regional Team Coordination, the Youth Qualification Department of the National Agency for Qualification and Vocational Education, and was facilitated by its coordinator, Elsa Santos.

The group participated online, through Carlos Gomes de Sá and Andreia Teixeira, in a moment of sharing that allowed everyone involved to learn. On the morning of the same day, the project was also presented to a group of post-doctoral students from the Catholic University, who are carrying out their study, and a visit by this group to the school is expected soon.

“Mar Sensorial” IS NOW RUNNING IN AVER-O-MAR: Snoezlen Room opens

As from today onwards, the Aver-o-Mar School Group will have a new multi-sensory space at the disposal of the community.

Named “Mar sensorial” (Sensory Sea), the new snoezelen room, which was opened today in the presence of several guests, is intended to be a facility open to the community, from students to the elderly, without forgetting the possibility of use by teachers and staff. To this end, an internal training plan will be organised by EMAEI, in conjunction with CFAE, to enable the room’s most direct users to get to know the equipment available and its function, with a view to promoting a plan adjusted to each user of the space, either on their own initiative or at the suggestion of others.

The room which opened today is located at the school and is the result of the efforts of the school and several partnerships, as highlighted by the Headmaster, Carlos Gomes de Sá.

Starting from a space that was refurbished when the school was renovated by the CCR Company, represented at this event by the Communications Director, Dr Patrícia Meira, the first financial boost came from the Quantal company almost two years ago, represented by Dr Carnem Doval. This was followed by participation in a competition, in this case the Bairro Feliz (Happy Neighbourhood) project, which the school group won in the previous school year, and Missão Continente, with the winning students (5th F – 2022/23), together with the class director who was also present at the time (Rute Ribeiro), donating the money for this project. The municipality entered the final phase of the project, supporting this cause, which saw a strong increase in its own income, raised through Erasmus projects associated with Special Education.  Among other collaborations, we highlight the painting of the space by Mr Araújo, reaching a total investment of more than €10,000, so it was an ambitious project and “a lot of will and a lot of battles and initiatives”, as the school Headmaster said.

Sensory stimulation therapy in a snoezelen room was already a reality for some of the Group’s students with autism, through CRI MAPADI, which was also present at the inauguration through its President, António Ramalho. Susete Araújo, coordinator of the EMAEI, and Emília Quintas, who is responsible for Pre-school Education at management level, also addressed the audience, explaining how the space works, and other guests attended the symbolic inauguration ceremony: Dr Andrea Silva, the Municipality’s Councillor for Social Action and head of the Aver-o-Mar Occupational Centre, as well as its coordinators, the President of Estela Parish Council, Vitor Correia, the Director of CFAE, Luís Fernandes, the Director and Deputy Director of AE Dr Flávio Gonçalves, respectively Dr Luísa Gomes and Prof. João Santos. João Santos, and the deputy mayor of Póvoa de Varzim, Dr Luís Diamantino, closed the session. The visit took the opportunity to look at the equipment for visual, auditory and tactile stimulation, and aromatherapy was the subject of several conversations because of the memories it produced.

The Mayor highlighted the ability of the school’s Headmaster to make things happen, who ends up putting several projects at the service of the community, through joint action with his team, teachers and local businesses, mentioning the work that is being done in terms of the immigrant population, while the school is already preparing for its Interculturality Festival at the end of the year and working on the construction of an open-air auditorium to further enhance learning in alternative spaces and make the most of the refurbishment of facilities that took place between 2018/2020.

The cake honouring the moment and the opening sign, the responsibility of teacher Fátima Cunha, who coordinates the Communication Club, will go down in history, and some of the students from this club recorded all the moments for later presentation on the internal video circuit. We also note the presence of students (especially from the Learning Support Centre and their teachers, with the coordinator of the Special Education department, Clara Vilar, also providing the initial training on how to use the various pieces of equipment installed, along with psychologist Susete Araújo), teachers and senior staff from the school, as well as the Technical Coordinator, Ana Cândida Brito, representing all the assistants, who were receptive to the project when the change of facilities took place.

The Aver-o-Mar School Board, which was also present at the session, would like to invite you to visit the space, which could be organised with EMAEI.