UK NOC's Study Challenges Role of Plankton in Ocean Carbon Storage Process
A new UK National Oceanography Centre (NOC)-led study has put a major question mark over the role a unique group of tiny microscopic plants plays in driving ocean carbon storage.Diatoms, a type of plankton or marine algae, have a significant role in drawing carbon down into the deep, especially in the Southern Ocean, which takes up about a third of organic carbon stored in the ocean.Uniquely, diatoms have dense, silica-based exoskeletons – like miniature glass houses – which were thought to provide ballast, making them prone to sinking and, therefore, a key way carbon is transported to the
US Marine Economy Worth $432 Billion in 2021
America’s marine economy contributed $432 billion in economic impact in 2021, making up nearly 2% of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP).That is according to the most recent statistics from the annual Marine Economy Satellite Account released by two Department of Commerce agencies —NOAA and the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). The marine economy statistics include activities in the US ocean, coasts and major water bodies such as the Great Lakes, Puget Sound and Chesapeake Bay.From 2020 to 2021, the marine economy bounced back strongly from declines associated with the COVID-19
#Oi2020 History
The 1980s (and into the 1990s) brought about advancements within submersibles used for scientific deep water research. According to the book Advances in Marine Technology, it was marine engineer and submarine Graham Hawkes, who “was recognized for designing approximately 70% of the manned submersibles” manufactured during that time. The book, as published by the Marine Technology Society, also notes that one of Hawkes’ inventions was “the Deep Rover, a battery-powered one-person acrylic bubble submersible equipped with robotic arms strong enough to handle construction yet
February 2025
