How to Read the Sea? The Next Open Lecture in the GMU Series Marking the Centenary of Gdynia
17.09.2026 | 3 min. czytania
On Thursday, 24 September 2026, at 18:00, in the auditorium at Gdynia Maritime University’s Faculty of Navigation, another popular science lecture will be held, organised by the University as part of the series prepared jointly with Gdynia's higher education institutions on the occasion of the celebrations marking the centenary of Gdynia. This week, Dr Grzegorz Rutkowski and Tymoteusz Tomczuk will discuss the development of nautical charts and their vital role in safe navigation.
The lecture, entitled 'How to Read the Sea? Charts That Guide Ships to the Port of Gdynia', will be dedicated to the evolution of nautical charts and the scope of information they present – from historical paper charts, the early days of port construction, and the local navigational knowledge used at the time, through 20th-century nautical charts and Electronic Navigational Charts (ENC) in the S-57 format used in ECDIS systems, to the unified S-100 data exchange standard currently under development.
The ECDIS electronic chart system has not relieved the captain of responsibility for safe navigation – it has merely shifted it. Technology has changed the tool, but the principle remains unchanged: the chart guides, but it is still the person on the bridge who must read it critically, explains one of the speakers,Tymoteusz Tomczuk.
Dr Grzegorz Rutkowski, GMU Professor, Master Mariner is a researcher and lecturer, founder and academic supervisor of the ‘SeaQuest’ Underwater Research Student Scientific Society, and an inventor (co-author of the MEMS Mobile Electromagnetic Mooring System, the Batychron flexible diving bell, the MUDS Base Mobile Underwater Diving Base, and innovative SAFL seabed anchors, among others).
He currently serves as Head of the Department of Navigation at GMU, a certified Dynamic Positioning Systems instructor, an accredited flag state inspector for the maritime administrations of the Bahamas, Barbados, Malta, Palau, Vanuatu, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, an IMO-recognised STCW assessor, a maritime accident investigator, a certified ship safety and security auditor (ISM/ISPS codes), a ship control and management systems auditor, a Master Mariner, a deep-sea pilot, and a recognised maritime expert.
Tymoteusz Tomczuk, MSc is a graduate of Gdynia Maritime University and Gdańsk University of Technology.
He currently works as an assistant lecturer in the GMU Department of Navigation and as an electronic chart analyst for Jeppesen. His professional interests include the analysis of ENC (S-57) charts as well as the research, popularisation, and implementation of the new S-100 standard. As an ECDIS instructor, he conducts practical simulator training for navigational bridge teams.
- Date: Thursday, 24 September 2026, 18:00
- Venue: Auditorium at the Gdynia Maritime University Faculty of Navigation, 3 Jana Pawła II Avenue
The lecture series is a collaborative initiative run jointly by Gdynia Maritime University, the Polish Naval Academy, WSB Merito University Gdynia, and the Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski University of Administration and Business, in cooperation with the City of Gdynia. The event is part of the celebrations marking the centenary of the city and aims to popularise knowledge and familiarise residents with the scientific activities of Gdynia's higher education institutions.
The talk will be given in Polish. Admission is free.
A warm welcome to all!