I have talked a lot about climate, and I know that brings up notions of things like land, atmosphere, ocean, and ice. But one thing that is intertwined with all of those environments is life. Student presentations from the Summer School have continued, and these next two student scientists talked about life from very different perspectives, and with such fascinating variety, that it reminds me how utterly cool it is that we are all on the same ship.
Florence (who is from the US) has had a lot of experience on the water, and talked about her work with the BASIS project (Bering Arctic Subarctic Integrated Surveys). The project is unique, as it combines fisheries and oceanographers to inform sustainable fishing practices – fisheries know fish, oceanographers know the environment. She talked about the entire spectrum of work, from collecting fish, plankton (and the odd ton of jellyfish) in various nets, to studying and preserving samples. To understand the role of microscopic phytoplankton in the ecosystem, she filtered samples to test for the presence of chlorophyll, oxygen, and nutrients, and put samples in a freezer if they needed to be preserved and later studied in the lab. How cold is the freezer? It’s -80°C!
Anna (who is from Russia and lives in the US) talked about another kind of life that you may not have heard about. Diatoms are a kind of photosynthetic algae that you can find as a single cell organism one-millionth of a meter in size, or in long threads called colonies that can be up to 5meters long. Why should we care about them? By studying their remains in sediments (they have a silica shell that preserves well), we can learn about the conditions (temperature, salinity/salt content) of the environment where/when they lived. If that didn’t convince you, here’s another reason to care: they can be found anywhere in the world, and provide 25-35% of the world’s oxygen supply. So for every third or fourth breath you take, you can thank diatoms!
Hi Lindsay,
Have you guys on board used the diatoms to collect any data for this research project?
Hi Sabrina, I talked with Anna, and she said that she has not collected diatoms here because you have to have a special permission to carry diatoms and other scientific samples across borders. But she assists in other experiments in the hydrochemistry lab onboard.
It was really cool to hear what others beside you are accomplishing in there expedition. I see that Anna studys Diatoms I was wondering how long does it take to make sure you have the accurate information ? & is it hard to calculate ?
Hi Jeyny, I am glad you are enjoying hearing from everyone on the ship. I talked with Anna for you, and this is what she said: During the summer, I go to the field and collect samples, and all winter, prepare those samples. I boil the diatoms to clean them of organic matter, and put them between two slides to observe them through a microscope. I study them in the spring to identify them and learn more, like about their environmental conditions. So it is a long but interesting process, and there are 100s of samples each year!
How does it feel knowing that you are giving students the opportunity to be involved in this research?
Dear Nicole, I can’t say how much I LOVE that it’s not just students here that get a chance to be a part of science “out in the field,” but also you and other students at home that get to follow along with us, and maybe be inspired to learn more yourself or even pursue these kinds of careers!
Do you think that having students involved slows down the research process?
Hi Nicole, I think it’s really important to involve students in the real research and experiments, so they get a chance to learn the equipment and processes. These are graduate students, and many of them have worked a lot on the theoretical side, so it’s great for them to see the “real-world” applications of their work. But you’re right, the scientists have to be efficient in their work, so there are parts of the process where they need to take care of something that is very precise or needs to be done quickly. But students can actively work in other parts of the process, and still observe the parts that the scientists need to do themselves.
How many eccentric and not well known species have you dealt with throughout the expedition?
Hi Yennyfer, the not-well-known species that we have dealt with onboard are generally of the microscopic kind, but they are super important to the ocean and ice and the Arctic in general. Some scientists are working with phytoplankton, which are “primary producers” of oxygen in the ocean and are the base of the food chain, and also diatoms, which are microscopic organisms that also supply oxygen to the environment.
That is an amazing fact about how much oxygen diatoms provide.we need oxygen every second of the day n most of the world doesn’t know they even exist, myself included
Hey Mom, it’s amazing right!? I knew about diatoms, but I had never heard that number before, which was so impressive!
Hi Lindsay Am Jennifer Rivas I Go To L.E.M.H.S I Want To Ask What kinds of changes are taking place in the Arctic now? & Will Arctic ice melt have any effects beyond the polar region?
Hi Jennifer, there are definitely changes happening in the arctic right now. Satellite images for the last few decades have shown a continually decreasing trend in the extent of sea ice. This is directly affecting wildlife in the area, like polar bears, who count on sea ice as hunting grounds to find dinner in the ocean. But these changes in the Arctic are also kind of like a warning signal of changes in the global climate. As the climate warms, the first places to show effects are the polar regions, and since the Arctic is directly connected to the rest of the world through the atmosphere and oceans, what happens in one place can affect the other.