Joint SOLAS Bergen Mesocosm Experiment 2008

Welcome to the homepage of the 2008 Joint Solas Bergen Mesocosm Experiment

The Key Question the project will test is:

What effect does the increased biological activity in the marine water column during a phytoplankton bloom have on the physicochemical, gas transfer and microbiological properties of the sea surface microlayer?

Specific objectives are:-
1. i) To determine total microbial (bacteria, archaea and eukarya) assemblage structure in the SML and subsurface water during an induced phytoplankton bloom.
2. ii) To quantify the expression of prokaryote genes and hence the microorganisms involved in the biogeochemical cycling of globally significant compounds, namely, methyl-halides, CH₄, DMS, N₂O, NO, NH₄, methanol.
3. iii) To quantify microbial production and sources of N₂O.
4. iv) To quantify the production of surfactants and characterise SML surfactants produced during the phytoplankton bloom.
5. v) To quantify the production (and air-sea exchange where appropriate) of biogenic gases: methyl-halides, CH₄, DMS, N₂O, NO and other relevant compounds such as NH₄, methanol and DMSP.