- Cluster Ocean Floor
- Structure
- Research Program
Research Program
The research program is organized into three closely intertwined Research Units that examine the ocean floor from different perspectives.
Research Units | ||
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Cross-Cutting Enablers |
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Early Career Researchers Support Program | ||
Research and Knowledge-Transfer Platforms Underwater Technology – Analytical Facilities – Core Repository – Research-Data Management – Public Engagement |
The Ocean Floor as RECEIVER approaches the ocean floor with a downward view through the water column, investigating how matter is being partitioned between the shelf and open ocean, transferred and transformed on its journey to the ocean floor, and how today’s oceanic system properties are embedded in the sedimentary record.
The Ocean Floor as REACTOR centers on geochemical and biogeochemical reactions at and within the ocean floor, their relationships to biological communities exploiting these reactions in a wide range of habitats, and fluxes of matter into and out of the overlying ocean.
The Ocean Floor as RECORDER will look into the past and decode proxy information stored in sedimentary records in order to elucidate the three-way relationships between physical climate processes, perturbations of the Earth system, and marine ecosystems, to provide a better understanding of the climate system and enable more robust projections of future climate change.
Enabling technology and methods will be developed across the Research Units. These crosscutting
enablers include innovative Deep-Sea Technology and Ocean-Floor Observing Systems (TECHNOLOGY), Molecular and Isotopic Tracers (TRACERS), and a Framework for Ocean-Floor Modeling (MODELING). The expected advances in knowledge will be made possible by a unique combination of expertise in Research and Knowledge-Transfer Platforms that include state-of-the-art analytical capabilities and provide direct access to the ocean floor by means of cutting-edge underwater technology. A further cross-cutting activity is the support of early career researchers.
The three Research Units are organized according to commonalities in underlying approaches and methods. At the same time, each Research Unit addresses several of the overarching objectives, ensuring integration of research across the Research Units. This research strategy will allow us to address the wide range of timescales associated with the overarching research questions and to combine instrumental observations with information from ocean-floor archives.