Fantastic opportunity for a PhD working in the Southern Ocean
Please read on below if interested
Best wishes
Corinne Pebody
From: Manno, Clara
Sent: 04 November 2015 14:57
To: Pebody, Corinne
Subject: PHD opportunity
Hi Corinne! Can you spread to everybody could be interested?
The effect of iron supply on diatoms and carbon sequestration: South Georgia (Antarctica) as “natural iron fertilized laboratory”
Deadline for application 23:59 on 6 January 2016
Project description
Changes in iron supply to oceanic phytoplankton have a significant effect on concentrations of atmospheric carbon dioxide by altering rates of carbon sequestration, a theory known as the 'iron hypothesis'. In situ mesoscale fertilizations experiments showed that the addition of iron (Fe) stimulated phytoplankton growth, especially diatoms. The development of large diatom blooms upon iron re-supply demonstrates the metabolic plasticity inherent to their ability to recover rapidly from nutrient limitation.
The Southern Ocean (SO) is considered as the largest ‘‘high-nutrient, low-chlorophyll’’ (HNLC) area where the suppression of Fe limitation could potentially affect phytoplankton productivity. However, in the region downstream of South Georgia an extensive bloom is supported until late summer by macronutrients and iron resupplied. The presence downstream of South Georgia of a “natural iron fertilized laboratory” is a unique opportunity to identify the processes that regulate diatom metabolism in order to forecast bloom development and carbon sequestration in an area estimated to have the largest seasonal uptake of atmospheric carbon dioxide yet measured in the Southern Ocean.
The project will aim to carry out comparative analyses on diatom physiology and growth rate at two oceanic sites off South Georgia with contrasting productivity regimes, with one site being naturally iron-fertilized and, the other, relatively iron-limited. The assemblage and abundance of diatoms during the bloom period will be investigated as well as their contribution to carbon export at both sites. The sensitivity of diatoms to low/high levels of iron will be investigated in incubation experiments with manipulated seawater. Particular focus will be dedicated to identify the transcriptome sequencing of selected key diatom species from this region in order to determine species-specific differences in their metabolic plasticity in response to changing iron concentrations.
Requirements, training and opportunities
Training and fieldwork: We seek an enthusiastic, pro-active team player with strong scientific interests and self-motivation. S/he will have at least a 2.1 honours degree in biology, or a branch of environmental science.The candidate will participate in one Southern Ocean sampling campaign for which he/she will receive training in sea-survival techniques and field-laboratory health and safety. On board, the student will participate in the collection of phytoplankton and run iron-manipulation experiments. The student will learn how to determine the transcriptome sequencing of selected key diatom and will develop skills in analysing dataset and remote sensing data processing. The student will be enrolled in the UEA Science Graduate School. See more at:
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