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Thorium-234 (234Th), a naturally radioactive element present in nature, is one of the most actively used tracers in oceanography. 234Th is widely used to study the removal rate of material on sinking particles from the upper ocean, known as “scavenging,” and for determining the downward flux of carbon. Starting in 1969, ocean measurements of the […]
Read MoreThe total pH scale used by oceanographers (for salinities 20 – 40, and temperatures 0 to 45°C) is calibrated from a combination of electromotive force measurements of artificial seawaters containing either added HCl of various molalities, or equimolal Tris and its protonated form TrisH+. In both cases, the added H+ or TrisH+ is substituted for […]
Read MoreRussia’s invasion of Ukraine brings the threat of nuclear warfare to the forefront. But how would modern nuclear detonations impact the world today? If used accidentally or intentionally, nuclear arsenals would endanger all life on Earth. A new study published in AGU Advances provides stark information on the global impact of nuclear war in a global earth system […]
Read MoreNo single program has been as transformative for ocean science over the past two decades as Argo: the fleet of robotic instruments that collect measurements of temperature and salinity in the upper 2 km of the ocean around the globe. The Argo program has been instrumental in revealing changes to ocean heat content, global sea […]
Read MoreOcean acidification research has grown over the past few decades. Much of recent research documents negative impacts of changing carbonate chemistry on calcifying marine organisms in laboratory experiments. At the 2018 Ocean Acidification PI Meeting, a group of us asked “Can these laboratory responses to ocean acidification be scaled up to accurately predict the responses […]
Read MoreUnderstanding decadal changes in the coastal carbonate system (CO2-system) is essential for predicting how the health of these waters is affected by anthropogenic drivers, such as changing atmospheric conditions and terrestrial inputs. However, studies that quantify the relative impacts of these drivers are lacking. A recent study in Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans identified the […]
Read MoreOcean acidification and rising temperatures have led to concerns about how calcifying organisms foundational to marine ecosystems, will be affected in the near future. We often look to analogous abrupt climate change events in Earth’s geologic past to inform our predictions of these future communities. The Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum (PETM) is an apt analog for […]
Read MoreCoccolithophores have survived several major extinction events over geologic time. The most significant was the asteroid impact at the K/T boundary, followed by months of darkness. Additionally, coccolithophores regularly reside in the twilight zone, just beyond the reach of sunlight. A paper recently published in the New Phytologist addresses how these photosynthetic algae can persist […]
Read MoreProchlorococcus is the world’s smallest phytoplankton (microscopic plant-like organisms) and the most numerous, with more than ten septillion individuals. This tiny plankton lives ubiquitously in warm, blue, tropical waters but is conspicuously absent in more polar regions. The prevailing theory was the cold: Prochlorococcus doesn’t grow at low temperatures. In a recent paper, the authors argue ecological […]
Read MoreRecently, it was reported that the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic-related lockdowns have led to a reduction in anthropogenic emissions of pollutant nitrogen on a global scale. This reduction may have induced a change in marine environmental conditions, providing a natural experiment for determining its impact on marine ecosystems. However, a direct cause-effect relationship between COVID-19 and […]
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