Eric Douglas Galbraith, McGill University
Adjunct Professor
Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Montreal, Quebec
eric.galbraith@mcgill.ca
Office:
(514) 398-3677
Expert In
Bio/Research
The marine ecosystem exerts a fundamental control on the chemistry of the oceans, as well as - via air-sea gas exchange - on the chemistry of the atmosphere. For example, the atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide are both significantly impacted by where and how organisms ...
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Bio/Research
The marine ecosystem exerts a fundamental control on the chemistry of the oceans, as well as - via air-sea gas exchange - on the chemistry of the atmosphere. For example, the atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide are both significantly impacted by where and how organisms grow in the ocean, and what happens to them when they die. At the same time, the physical climate state has an impact on the marine ecosystem, primarily by changing ocean circulation. This changes things like the resupply of nutrients from the deep ocean to the sunlit surface, and the supply of dissolved oxygen from the surface to the deep.
I use three complementary tools to study these links between the marine ecosystem and climate: observations of the modern ocean, simulations of ocean biogeochemistry with computer models, and sedimentary records of past climate change. The geological archive offers a rich array of natural experiments during which the climate and marine ecosystem changed, sometimes violently - but the archive is hard to read, and the mechanisms at work are often ambiguous. Observations of the modern ocean are critical in order to understand the dynamical processes at play behind these past changes. Computer models can help to explore hypotheses, by illustrating natural modes of variability in the climate system, by testing their applicability to past episodes of change, and by pinpointing uncertainties. Ultimately, the research is directed toward an enhanced appreciation of variability in the Earth system, which may help us predict future changes.
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I use three complementary tools to study these links between the marine ecosystem and climate: observations of the modern ocean, simulations of ocean biogeochemistry with computer models, and sedimentary records of past climate change. The geological archive offers a rich array of natural experiments during which the climate and marine ecosystem changed, sometimes violently - but the archive is hard to read, and the mechanisms at work are often ambiguous. Observations of the modern ocean are critical in order to understand the dynamical processes at play behind these past changes. Computer models can help to explore hypotheses, by illustrating natural modes of variability in the climate system, by testing their applicability to past episodes of change, and by pinpointing uncertainties. Ultimately, the research is directed toward an enhanced appreciation of variability in the Earth system, which may help us predict future changes.
Click to Shrink <<