College
College of Marine Science
Mentor Information
Patrick Rafter
Description
The North Atlantic is a volatile region with low iron availability, where diatoms make up a majority of the phytoplankton. Due to iron’s low supply and high demand, it is often retained within the system and reused through iron recycling. Iron recycling helps predict fluctuations in diatom biomass, which directly impacts the biological carbon pump, transporting carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into the deep ocean. Estimating recycling rate allows for comparisons to other regions that have previously been studied creating a better understanding of the ocean-climate system and how different environmental factors influence the climate. Using assumed source water iron and nitrate levels, iron recycling rate predictions were made for the viable period of a specific diatom population. Learning the impacts helps us with predicting the natural cycle of carbon and the climate, and can tell us information that would be useful should we try and influence the amount of carbon in the area ourselves.
Quantifying iron recycling in the nutrient-rich North Atlantic Ocean
The North Atlantic is a volatile region with low iron availability, where diatoms make up a majority of the phytoplankton. Due to iron’s low supply and high demand, it is often retained within the system and reused through iron recycling. Iron recycling helps predict fluctuations in diatom biomass, which directly impacts the biological carbon pump, transporting carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into the deep ocean. Estimating recycling rate allows for comparisons to other regions that have previously been studied creating a better understanding of the ocean-climate system and how different environmental factors influence the climate. Using assumed source water iron and nitrate levels, iron recycling rate predictions were made for the viable period of a specific diatom population. Learning the impacts helps us with predicting the natural cycle of carbon and the climate, and can tell us information that would be useful should we try and influence the amount of carbon in the area ourselves.
