Oceans Help Predict a Wave of Climate Change
contributed by Ocean Optics |
A fluorescence-based assay helps study carbon fixation by plankton in the oceans
Tiny Algae, Big Impact
Marine phytoplankton are an important part of the carbon cycle, converting CO2 to organic matter via photosynthesis in a process known as carbon fixation. When phytoplankton die, they sink into the ocean as biomass, becoming food for heterotrophic bacteria or settling on the sea floor. Carbon fixation by the oceans helps to balance production of atmospheric CO2, so an understanding of the dynamics involved is vital to predicting climate change.
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