Project: Biogenic Chemical Records in Deep-Sea Sediments and Their Application to Paleo-Oceanographic Study

NSF Award Abstract:
This research will continue a project to study climatically induced changes in biogenic sedimentation in the oceans. The type of biogenic material found in core samples varies with the paleoclimate and, therefore, appears to be temperature controlled. This research project will develop more rapid methods for doing the analysis of the biogenic material, and extend the earlier studies to both older sediment and other cores where independent estimates of paleotemperature have been made. The results of this research will lead to the understanding of causes for changes in primary productivity in the oceans during climatic changes.