The Role of Suspended Particle Layers in the Biogeochemistry of Monterey Bay, California

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dc.contributor.advisorSansone, Frank
dc.contributor.authorRothschild, Christopher
dc.contributor.departmentOceanography
dc.date.accessioned2014-09-26T21:44:39Z
dc.date.available2014-09-26T21:44:39Z
dc.date.issued2014-09-26
dc.description.abstractRecent evidence suggests that suspended particles may act as anoxic or suboxic (low dissolved molecular oxygen) microzones in oxygenated seawater. In March 2002, the remotely operated vehicle Ventana was used to study layers of such suspended particles in Monterey Bay, California. This new method of water column sampling allowed for water collection with minimal disturbance, yielding detailed chemical analyses of the layers and the surrounding seawater. Although elevated levels of methane were discovered in the water column, they did not correlate with particle concentrations. In addition, it appears that, with the exclusion of 5 extraneous points, concentrations of dissolved silica, alkalinity, nitrogen, phosphorus, methane, oxygen, and N20 showed large changes independent of particle concentration. Comparison of Monterey Bay nutrient data to Pacific open-ocean data indicates possible depletion of particulate C by the time sampled depths in Monterey are reached, thereby limiting the role particles play in the waters. Although this appears to refute the hypothesis that suspended particle layers play an active role in controlling the bulk water column chemistry of the bay, small-scale perturbations may be present but just not discernable from the sampling scale and depths of this research. In September 2001 similar research was done that included methane stable carbon isotope data, indicating future study of this system should include a more detailed look at small-scale changes at, above, and below individual particle layers in addition to mineral analysis of the particles, and methane and N20 stable isotope data.
dc.format.extent67 pages
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10125/33935
dc.publisherUniversity of Hawaii at Manoa
dc.rightsAll UHM Honors Projects are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission from the copyright owner.
dc.titleThe Role of Suspended Particle Layers in the Biogeochemistry of Monterey Bay, California
dc.typeTerm Project
dc.type.dcmiText

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