Microscopic algae known as phytoplankton are photoautotrophic organisms. That is to say that like higher plants, they use minerals (C02, P, N …) and energy from the sun to grow and multiply. As the base of the marine food chain, they are also the base of organic matter production and the sequestration of atmospheric C02. Because of this, understanding the processes controlling their biomass and degradation is a major challenge for scientists.
As last year, scientists from the GreenEdge project are in the little village of Qikiqtarjuaq. Dozens of experiments are carried out at the ice camp. Here is an account of a new series of activities to evaluate the amount of organic matter that is exported from the surface to the bottom of the ocean.
In the first meters of the water column, enough light makes it through the ice to maintain an active primary production. This bloom is restricted to the first few meters of the water column and therefore, we may wonder how is it possible for organisms living at the bottom of the ocean to survive without food? Part of the answer resides in the amount of exported organic matter.Continue reading Uranium + Thorium→
During the Green Edge cruise aboard the Canadian ice-breaker, much of our work is to keep phytoplankton alive out of their natural environment. We also aim to isolate them to get clonal cultures.
