About the project
Ocean biogeochemical models form an important component of the Earth System Models used to make climate projections. However, they represent a present-day ecosystem, not a future one. This project will improve climate projections by investigating approaches to allow the biogeochemical model to respond to climate driven shifts in the ecosystem.
Ocean biogeochemical models simplify the real world using functions with parameters that represent processes, such as the maximum number of phytoplankton that zooplankton can eat in one day. These parameters have single values, constant through space and time. However, parameter values suitable for preindustrial conditions may be less so under climate change. For example, plankton may adapt to eat less/more per day on average, and therefore this parameter value will become unsuitable when modelling the future climate. We need to allow these parameters to adapt, as life does, to better predict how the true ocean will respond to a changing climate.
To accomplish this, one could apply numerical optimisation algorithms to calibrate the parameters within a selected global ocean biogeochemical model to observations (e.g. remote sensing) at multiple times over the recent present (e.g. last ~20 years). This will reveal how plankton parameters change through time in response to changing environmental factors, such as temperature. Combined with observed and predicted ocean biogeochemical trends from recent literature, these inferred relationships will then be used to create adaptive parameterisations within the model. The impact these have on the ocean’s response to climate change can then be investigated for future projections under different emissions scenarios. Significant responses will highlight the importance of adaptive biogeochemical parameterisations for future climate predictions, and allow the development of better climate models.
Supervisory team
The supervisory team includes supervisors from several organisations, including our INSPIRE Partners. Please contact the Lead Supervisor for more information about the team.
Training
The INSPIRE DTP programme provides comprehensive personal and professional development training alongside extensive opportunities for students to expand their multi-disciplinary outlook through interactions with a wide network of academic, research and industrial/policy partners. The student will be registered at the University of Southampton and hosted at NOC. Specific training will include:
- coding languages required for running models and analyzing outputs (e.g. Fortran, MATLAB, Python)
- global ocean biogeochemistry and ocean biogeochemical modelling
- numerical optimisation techniques
- experience in climate modelling and future scenario projection
- experience in presenting at international conferences
- other training and experiences can be provided depending on the student’s interests, e.g. sea-going expeditions, ocean observing techniques, ocean policy, etc
