I am a biological oceanographer who studies phytoplankton and sinking particles. My work currently focuses on quantifying the "biological pump": the process by which particles sink out of the surface ocean and export carbon to the deep ocean, effectively sequestering carbon from the atmosphere. Carbon is fixed into organic matter in the surface ocean by phytoplankton, which can either sink directly, aggregate and sink, or be eaten by zooplankton and sinking inside their fecal pellets. My research identifies which phytoplankton are influencing carbon export, how their responses affect carbon export, and which particle types are responsible for carbon export. Ultimately, my goal is to increase quantitative observations of carbon export in the ocean and improve predictions of the ocean carbon cycle. I currently focus on imaging, image processing, and machine learning to identify particles. I also use molecular methods to further resolve the biological composition of sinking particles and the physiology and diversity of the organisms driving these processes. Field, lab, and computational work are equally important in this research.
