Dr. Jessica Fitzsimmons (Program Co-Director) is a chemical oceanographer whose research focuses on the cycling of trace metals in the ocean. She studies both the processes that control the cycling of metals that are required as nutrients for photosynthesizing plankton (such as iron) as well as the delivery of pollutant trace metals to the oceans (such as lead). Her work utilizes mass spectrometry to determine trace metal concentrations, the size and complexation of these metals, and their isotope signatures, and her research projects range from Antarctic oceanography to deep-sea mining in the subtropics. Potential REU projects include: 1) Measuring the binding capacity of toxic and tracer metals by organic compounds before and after deep-sea mining; 2) Exploring the role of nanoparticulate metals in the dissolved metal inventories of the South Pacific and Southern Oceans.
Dr. Darren Henrichs (Program Director) is a biological oceanographer with research interests in applying machine learning to biology, simulation modeling of phytoplankton, and time series analysis of phytoplankton community dynamics. Potential REU projects include: 1) Use of reinforcement learning for training a phytoplankton behavioral model; 2) Application of recurrent neural networks for developing a predictive model of the phytoplankton community using historical time series; 3) Development and application of an image classifier using a convolutional neural network for use on a mini-computer (e.g. Raspberry Pi); 4) Combining small electronic sensors to measure the environment in a mesocosm; 5) Identifying potential origins of bloom forming species using an individual-based model.
Dr. Spencer Jones is a physical oceanographer who studies the pathways of water through the ocean. He combines ocean models with methods from Calculus 1&2 to understand how the ocean works. Potential projects include: 1) analyzing the trajectories of surface floats and characterizing whether those floats accumulate in particulate regions of the ocean, and 2) investigating how ocean bottom friction impacts the pathways of deep ocean currents.
Dr. Andrew Klein is a geographer whose research focuses on the application of remote sensing and Geographic Information Science (GISci) to study the cryosphere. Dr. Klein is actively involved in using these technologies to study the localized human impacts in the marine and terrestrial environments surrounding U.S. scientific stations in the Antarctic. Dr. Klein and his students also use remote sensing to study glacier recession in the tropics. He has been actively involved in developing algorithms to measure snow extent and snow albedo from satellites, especially that collected by the NASA’s MODIS instrument. Dr. Klein’s potential REU topics will revolve around using mapping and geospatial analysis to investigate human impact in the local terrestrial and marine environments surrounding McMurdo and Palmer Stations, Antarctica as determined from over a decade of geochemical and biological measurements.
Dr. Yina Liu is an organic biogeochemist with particular interests in how cycling of organic compounds, both natural and anthropogenic, affect biological and ecological processes and vice versa. These interconnected processes are important drivers for organic carbon and contaminant cycling at regional and global scales. Her group uses untargeted and targeted analyses as well as data science to shed light on different aspects of organic biogeochemistry.
Dr. Franco Marcantonio is geochemist whose research focuses on analysis of radiogenic isotopes and trace elements in ocean sediments to understand more about how Earth’s environment and climate has changed throughout the past. He also studies the modern-day environment, including the fate and transport of contaminants in both urban and remote regions of the planet. Potential REU projects will revolve around measurement of lead isotope measurements in recently-collected atmospheric aerosol samples across a wide region of the South Pacific Ocean. The dispersal of the atmospheric lead isotopic signal by ocean circulation will be determined by pairing our measurements with those in seawater samples from the same region.
Dr. Peter Morton is a chemical oceanographer whose research focuses on the global-scale transport of bioactive trace elements (both nutrient and toxicant). Potential REU projects include: 1) atmospheric inputs of natural and anthropogenic sources of iron and lead to the Indian Ocean, 2) influence of major nutrients in the open ocean on the bioaccumulation of arsenic in seaweed (Atlantic Ocean), 3) sources of heavy metals in natural colors and spices (i.e., turmeric).
Dr. Marie Strader is an integrative biologist whose research focuses on how ecological and evolutionary processes play out in response to human induced changes in the environment. Our research aims to establish links between genotype and phenotype that will aid in predicting ecological and evolutionary trajectories of marine invertebrate taxa. We approach our research in an integrative and collaborative fashion, combining physiological and behavioral experiments, and molecular biology with large-scale genomics data. We aim to uncover mechanistic understanding of how marine invertebrates persist in rapidly changing habitats. Potential REU topics include: 1) characterizing thermal limits of multiple life-history stages of upside-down jellyfish to better understand organismal traits underlying their possible range expansion; 2) developing algal cultures to perform infection experiments in upside-down jellyfish to test the role of symbiosis on the oxidative stress response and antioxidant production; 3) quantifying how the immune response varies when exposed to different temperature and microbial environments during early embryogenesis; 4) developing clonal lines of jellyfish to test the role of epigenetics on differential responses to the environment.
Dr. Jason Sylvan is a biological oceanographer. His lab studies the geomicrobiology and biogeochemistry of the deep ocean including hydrothermal ecosystems, deep-sea corals, and the subseafloor deep biosphere in sediments and volcanic basement. They address fundamental questions about the biology, chemistry and geology of the Earth through the study of interactions between the ocean crust and the marine biosphere. His lab is also interested in the microbiology and biogeochemistry of our own backyard, the Gulf of Mexico, where they are currently studying a variety of questions related to how microbial populations respond to events such as hurricanes. Potential REU projects include: 1) quantifying microbial diversity in subseafloor sediments from the South Atlantic Ocean, 2) analysis of microbial genomes from deep-sea corals, or 3) analysis of microbial genomes from deep-sea hydrothermal vents.
Dr. Shari Yvon-Lewis is a chemical oceanographer. Her lab studies the role of the ocean in regulating atmospherically important trace gases. A variety of trace gases including halocarbons (e.g. methyl halides, trihalomethanes), nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide, and methane are both produced and degraded in the ocean. The distribution and strength of the various oceanic sources and sinks impacts the exchange of these gases between the ocean and atmosphere. Through ship-board measurements, laboratory studies and modeling, my research group examines the role/magnitude of oceanic influence on trace gases that are important in the atmosphere as stratospheric ozone depletors or greenhouse gases. Some prior REU projects included 1) assessing the nitrous oxide emissions from waters on the Texas/Louisiana shelf, and 2) methane emissions from Galveston Bay. Opportunities exist for similar or related projects during this summer.