Professor Nuno Cota (DEETC/ISEL) took part in a meeting promoted by the President of the Republic on the prevention of and response to natural hazards, held at the Belém Palace. The meeting brought together more than two dozen specialists from different scientific and technical fields.Nuno Cota, specialist and researcher in the areas of communications resilience and emergency communications, contributed with his know‑how and technical experience to the central objectives of the session, focused on knowledge sharing, convergence of perspectives, and the identification of strategies aimed at preventing and responding to future natural hazards, with particular emphasis on communications systems and their resilience in emergency scenarios.The initiative followed the Open Presidency held in regions of the Centre of the country recently affected by severe weather events. It was attended by specialists from the fields of energy, telecommunications, emergency communications, agriculture, forestry, wildfires, infrastructure, climate, sustainability and the environment, landscape, biodiversity, and nature conservation.The meeting fulfilled a commitment made by the Head of State after visiting the affected areas, making it possible to hear concrete proposals and promote multidisciplinary dialogue among experts, with a view to defining sustainable and effective solutions to the challenges currently facing the country.Professor Nuno Cota’s participation reflects ISEL’s active involvement in cooperation between academia and public institutions, contributing scientific knowledge to the definition of solutions in strategic areas for the country.Photographs: Miguel Figueiredo Lopes / Presidência da República

An international team of British, Spanish, and Portuguese scientists, including professors from ISEL, has published a study in Nature Communications (read here).Scientists have discovered how major geological faults can both guide rising magma and help prevent eruptions. The paper has been published in the journal Nature Communications.An international team studied a powerful volcano-tectonic unrest event affecting São Jorge Island in the Azores in March 2022. Using high-resolution earthquake locations from land and ocean-bottom seismometers and ground deformation from satellite radar and GPS data, the researchers reconstructed the detailed underground movement of magma.They found that a vertical sheet of magma, known as a dike, rose rapidly from more than 20 km below the surface before stalling just 1.6 km beneath the island. Much of this ascent occurred with little seismic activity, with most earthquakes occurring after the magma stopped ascending.“This was a stealthy intrusion,” said Lead Author Stephen Hicks from University College London. “Magma moved quickly through the crust, but much of its journey was silent, making it difficult to forecast whether an eruption would occur.”Satellite observations showed that the volcano's surface rose by 6 cm, confirming that magma had entered the shallow crust. However, the intrusion stalled before reaching the surface, resulting in what scientists define as a “failed eruption”. Such intrusions help to grow islands and this study’s unprecedented sharp earthquake maps show how this happens.The magma rose through one of the island’s main fault systems, the Pico do Carvão Fault Zone. By studying geological traces left by ancient earthquakes, scientists had previously found that this fault system has produced large earthquakes in the past. But instead of a single large earthquake, the unrest from rising magma produced many small earthquakes clustered along this fault.  The team interpreted that the fault helped guide magma upward, and may also have allowed gases and fluids to escape sideways, lowering pressure in the magma and helping halt its ascent.“The fault acted like both a highway and a leak,” said Pablo J. González, the study's co-lead author, from the Spanish National Research Council (IPNA-CSIC) in Tenerife. “It helped magma rise, but may also have prevented an eruption.”The findings show that large magma intrusions can occur rapidly and with limited warning, and that major geological faults can strongly influence whether magma erupts or stalls underground, key insights for improving volcanic hazard forecasting.“This study supported local authorities in assessing a potential volcanic threat, highlighting the value of combining onshore and offshore geophysical data for accurate detection and localisation of seismic events and ground deformation”, said Ricardo Ramalho, a co-author from Cardiff University. “Securing urgent NERC funding to access equipment from its Geophysical Equipment Facility (GEF), alongside additional support from Portugal, was a tremendous collective effort and a clear example of transnational cooperation between academic and civil institutions in Portugal, the UK, and Spain”, said Ana Ferreira, co-author from UCL. Instituto Dom Luiz (IDL) contributionIDL was able to quickly deploy a network of about 20 seismometers and 5 GNSS geodetic receivers in the island of São Jorge only a few days after the onset of seismicity, using of a pool of instruments shared between Faculdade de Ciências da Universudade de Lisboa (FCUL) and Instituto Superior de Engenharia de Lisboa (ISEL) (seismometers), and Universidade da beira Interior (UBI) (GNSS receivers). These fast deployments complemented existing permanent networks, providing critical coverage of the early stages of the crisis, and contributing to its high resolution imaging. This work was funded by research grants from:The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC; UK)The European Research Council (ERC)Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT; Portugal)Agencia Estatal de Investigación (Spain)Regional Government of the Azores, with field assistance for the offshore deployment provided by the Portuguese Navy (Marinha Portuguesa).Geophysical equipment was provided by NERC’s Geophysical Equipment Facility (GEF; Seis-UK for seismometers and OBIC for ocean bottom seismometers).The following institutions were involved in the work: University College London (UCL; UK), Spanish National Research Council (IPNA-CSIC; Spain), Cardiff University (UK), University of Manchester (UK), Universidade de Lisboa (Portugal), Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa (Portugal), University of Évora (Portugal), University of Beira Interior (Portugal), Centro de Informação e Vigilância Sismovulcânica dos Açores (CIVISA; Portugal), University of Algarve (Portugal), Instituto Português do Mar e da Atmosfera (IPMA; Portugal), AIR Centre (Portugal), C4G (Portugal).Photos: Ricardo Ramalho

ISEL and the University of Cape Verde (Uni‑CV) signed an institutional cooperation agreement on 27 March, strengthening a strategic partnership in the fields of education, research, and innovation in engineering and technology.The ceremony took place at the Palmarejo Grande Campus of the University of Cabo Verde, in the city of Praia, coinciding with the inauguration of Uni‑CV’s new Rector, Professor Astrigilda Pires Rocha Silveira. This event marked the first formal act of her term of office. ISEL was represented by Professor António Serrador, Advisor for Internationalization.Cooperation in Engineering, Innovation, and Digital TransformationThe agreement establishes a broad framework for cooperation that includes academic mobility for students, faculty, and technical staff; collaboration in digital transformation and technical capacity building; the development of applied research and innovation projects; joint supervision of academic work; participation in international projects; and the organization of seminars, workshops, and other scientific initiatives.During the ceremony, the Rector of Uni‑CV highlighted the importance of digital transition and artificial intelligence as key pillars of the partnership, emphasizing the need to involve the entire academic community in the implementation of the planned projects.A Partnership with Strong Academic RootsAt the ceremony, António Lobo de Pina, a faculty member of the Faculty of Science and Technology of Uni‑CV, recalled that the initial contact between the two institutions arose in the context of the creation of the Civil Engineering bachelor’s degree at the University of Cabo Verde. This was the first academic partnership between Uni‑CV and ISEL, with the Portuguese institution recognized as a reference in practice‑oriented and applied engineering education.Professor António Serrador also underscored the symbolic importance of ISEL’s institutional presence on the first day of the new Rector’s mandate, reinforcing ISEL’s commitment to academic cooperation within the Community of Portuguese‑Speaking Countries (CPLP) and in the European context.The ceremony was also attended by Vice‑Rectors, heads of academic units and technical services of Uni‑CV, as well as faculty members and researchers from the technological fields.Photography: Uni-CV

Between 23 and 27 March, ISEL hosted the on‑site component of the Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) “Sustainable Engineering in Action: from Idea to Impact”, organised under the European Union’s Erasmus+ programme. The programme brought together students and lecturers from different European institutions to address current challenges in sustainability and engineering.The BIP organised by ISEL stood out for its innovative character, the transdisciplinary nature of its teams, and its focus on some of today’s major global challenges, such as the circular economy, sustainable materials, innovative business models, and the social impact of engineering. Throughout the programme, participants were challenged to transform sustainability ideas into concrete engineering solutions, strengthening skills such as critical thinking, creativity, and teamwork.Virtual component: from research to solution preparationThe virtual component took place between 23 February and 22 March and was structured in two phases: a research phase (23 February to 8 March) and a phase dedicated to analysis and preparation of presentations (9 to 22 March). Students worked in groups focused on one of the seven key areas of the circular economy defined by the European Commission: plastics; textiles; electronic waste; food, water and nutrients; packaging; batteries and vehicles; buildings and construction.This preliminary work allowed participants to understand the complexity and interdisciplinary nature of advanced sustainable engineering practices, serving as a foundation for the development of the solutions presented and further explored during the on‑site week.On‑site component: learning, collaboration and discovering LisbonDuring the on‑site week at ISEL, participants attended several specialist talks, developed collaborative activities and projects, and had direct contact with real‑world contexts for the application of sustainable engineering. The programme also included various activities in Lisbon, such as a team‑building session at the VR Arena, an industrial visit to the company Hychem, and a cultural visit to the Lisbon Oceanarium.What is a BIP?Blended Intensive Programmes were created to promote the internationalisation of higher education, making it accessible to all students regardless of their academic background, scientific field, or level of study. These programmes combine a virtual component, developed over several weeks, with an intensive one‑week on‑site component at a foreign higher education institution.See the photo album on Flickr.

ISEL and the Military Academy signed a cooperation protocol on March 20th, reinforcing the commitment of both institutions to the development of entrepreneurial and innovative skills.This partnership aims to carry out Research, Development and Innovation (R&D&I) projects, disseminate scientific knowledge, and promote the exchange of resources and experiences between the parties involved, with particular attention to strategic areas of interest to both institutions, including national security and defense.Following the protocol ceremony, a visit to the Bemposta Palace facilities took place, along with the traditional photograph on the interior staircase.    Texto e imagens: Academia Militar

ISEL is launching its first doctoral programme, the PhD in Cyber-Physical Systems for Sustainable Development (CPS-SD), which will begin in the 2026/2027 academic year, marking a historic milestone for the institution.The programme represents a decisive step in strengthening ISEL’s role in advanced education and research in engineering and technology. It reinforces the institution’s position as a reference in engineering higher education, innovation, and applied research, while also highlighting its strategic commitment to internationalisation and sustainability, through a doctoral programme taught in English and focused on global technological challenges.According to the President of ISEL, Professor José Nascimento:“The approval of this programme represents a key milestone in fulfilling ISEL’s commitment to further strengthening its position within the field of engineering research.”Engineering and technology for sustainable developmentFully taught in English, the programme has been designed for both national and international students, promoting a global academic environment aligned with the major technological and societal challenges of the 21st century.With a duration of four years (240 ECTS), the PhD focuses on applied research in Cyber-Physical Systems. Building on the expertise of ISEL’s academic staff and researchers in areas such as sensing, computation, communication, and control of physical processes, the programme is dedicated to the development of technological solutions that enable intelligent real-time interaction between the digital and physical worlds.These systems form the technological foundation of strategic areas such as smart cities, resilient infrastructures, sustainable energy systems, digital health, and advanced industry.The programme promotes technological solutions aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, placing engineering at the service of global challenges such as environmental sustainability, energy efficiency, and digital transformation.Interdisciplinary education and researchThe PhD brings together scientific expertise from several areas at ISEL, including electronic engineering, computer engineering, physics, and biomedical engineering, long recognised both nationally and internationally in academia, research, and collaborative projects with leading R&D partners.During the first year, students attend advanced courses covering topics such as sustainable development, research methods and scientific ethics, foundations of cyber-physical systems, and technological innovation.In the following years, doctoral candidates focus on developing their research project leading to the doctoral thesis, contributing to the advancement of scientific and technological knowledge.A new step for ISELThe approval of this programme represents an important step in implementing ISEL’s strategy as a reference institution in engineering research, strengthening its capacity to train researchers and specialists capable of leading high-impact technological projects.With this PhD programme, ISEL opens a new chapter in its academic history, strengthening the link between education, research, and innovation, and contributing to the training of professionals prepared to address major technological and environmental challenges.More information about the programme here.