" Scientists need far more data on iron concentrations in surface and deep ocean waters to model climate change more effectively." - Mark Wells, Professor of Marine Sciences
The study of climate change has fueled the need for more detailed scientific data. University of Maine scientists Mark Wells and Carl Tripp, and their colleague Whitney King at Colby College, recently received a nearly $1.3 million grant from the National Science Foundation to continue their work in developing a sensor to measure the micronutrients iron and copper. The metals are important in sustaining the natural growth of phytoplankton — tiny plants that not only serve as the foundation of the marine ecosystem, but also sequester carbon dioxide, the predominant greenhouse gas responsible for global warming. Currently, the process to measure iron and copper is time consuming, requiring that water samples collected from large research vessels be brought back to the lab for analysis. Instead, the proposed sensors could be attached to moorings, drifting floats or underwater gliders.
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