MSc. Anouk van Boxtel

In my PhD project I study the effects of Saharan dust deposition on the biological pump in the Mediterranean Sea. I am specifically interested in the fertilizing effects of Saharan dust and the influence on phytoplankton community composition, and the role dust deposition in exporting carbon from the surface ocean to the deep sea. To study this I use material from sediment-traps that collect sinking particles, including phytoplankton remains and dust particles. The unique time-series of sediment trap material we are studying spans from the early 1990’s to now and is still ongoing. This allows us to study both seasonal and long-term variation in the relationships between Saharan dust input, phytoplankton response and carbon export.

More information about dust and dust-related research at NIOZ can be found here.