Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences
Encyclopedia
The Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences (German
: Leibniz-Institut für Meereswissenschaften, IFM-GEOMAR) is a research institute in Kiel
, Germany. It was formed in 2004 by merging the Institute for Marine Science (IFM) with the Research Center for Marine Geosciences (GEOMAR) and is co-funded by both federal and provincial governments. It is a member of the Leibniz Association and coordinator of the FishBase Consortium. The institute operates world-wide in all ocean basins, specialising in climate dynamics, marine ecology and biogeochemistry, and ocean floor dynamics and circulation. IFM-GEOMAR offers degree courses in affiliation with the University of Kiel
, and operates the Kiel Aquarium and the Lithothek, a repository for split sediment core samples.
s: the 36 year old RV Poseidon (1050 GRT
) and the 20 year old RV Alkor (1000 GRT). In 2009, both vessels were refurbished and modernised. It also operates the research cutter, RC Littorina (168 GRT) and the research boat, RB Polarfuchs (16 GRT). In addition it operates JAGO, a three ton research submersible
, the only manned research submersible in Germany, capable of diving to 400 metres, as well as a remotely operated underwater vehicle, ROV Kiel 6000 capable of diving to 6,000 metres, an autonomous underwater vehicle
, AUV Abyss, and a video-controlled hydraulic grab, TV-Grab. At the end of 2010, the institute took possession of ROV Phoca, a new 1.5 ton ROV with an operational working depth of 3000 metres.
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
: Leibniz-Institut für Meereswissenschaften, IFM-GEOMAR) is a research institute in Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
, Germany. It was formed in 2004 by merging the Institute for Marine Science (IFM) with the Research Center for Marine Geosciences (GEOMAR) and is co-funded by both federal and provincial governments. It is a member of the Leibniz Association and coordinator of the FishBase Consortium. The institute operates world-wide in all ocean basins, specialising in climate dynamics, marine ecology and biogeochemistry, and ocean floor dynamics and circulation. IFM-GEOMAR offers degree courses in affiliation with the University of Kiel
University of Kiel
The University of Kiel is a university in the city of Kiel, Germany. It was founded in 1665 as the Academia Holsatorum Chiloniensis by Christian Albert, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp and has approximately 23,000 students today...
, and operates the Kiel Aquarium and the Lithothek, a repository for split sediment core samples.
Research divisions
FM-GEOMAR is structured into four research divisions:- Ocean circulation and climate dynamicsPhysical oceanographyPhysical oceanography is the study of physical conditions and physical processes within the ocean, especially the motions and physical properties of ocean waters.Physical oceanography is one of several sub-domains into which oceanography is divided...
: This division, lead by Mojib LatifMojib LatifMojib Latif is a German meteorologist and oceanographer. Descendant of a Pakistani family, Latif was born in Hamburg. His father was an Imam at Fazle Omar Mosque. Latif graduated with a Diplom in meteorology in 1983. He took a position as scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology in...
, investigates climate from different time perspectives, with computer simulations and ocean current models that include meteorological, geological and oceanographic considerations. Current ocean measurements are made from research vessels at sea, and include the use of remote sensingRemote sensingRemote sensing is the acquisition of information about an object or phenomenon, without making physical contact with the object. In modern usage, the term generally refers to the use of aerial sensor technologies to detect and classify objects on Earth by means of propagated signals Remote sensing...
.
- Marine biogeochemistry: Work in this division looks at the way the components of the marine biogeochemical processes interact with each other. These components include the material in the atmosphere, the sediment and oceanic reservoirs, and the biological organisms including humans. Particular attention is paid to the atmosphere/ocean interface and the sediment/ocean interface, as well as to elements and compounds which can cycle and cause radiative forcingRadiative forcingIn climate science, radiative forcing is generally defined as the change in net irradiance between different layers of the atmosphere. Typically, radiative forcing is quantified at the tropopause in units of watts per square meter. A positive forcing tends to warm the system, while a negative...
. Research ranges from the atmosphere over the ocean, through the ocean surface layerSurface layerThe surface layer is the layer of a turbulent fluid most affected by interaction with a solid surface or the surface separating a gas and a liquid where the characteristics of the turbulence depend on distance from the interface...
into the water column, and then down to the marine sedimentsPelagic sedimentsPelagic sediment or pelagite is a fine-grained sediment that has accumulated by the settling of particles through the water column to the ocean floor beneath the open ocean far from land. These particles consist primarily of either the microscopic, calcareous or siliceous shells of phytoplankton or...
and the oceanic crustOceanic crustOceanic crust is the part of Earth's lithosphere that surfaces in the ocean basins. Oceanic crust is primarily composed of mafic rocks, or sima, which is rich in iron and magnesium...
. Field work is also undertakes, as well as laboratory and mesocosmMesocosmA mesocosm is an experimental tool that brings a small part of the natural environment under controlled conditions. In this way mesocosms provide a link between observational field studies that take place in natural environments, but without replication, and controlled laboratory experiments that...
studies. The division also develops biological, chemical and isotope diagnostic tools for measuring proxy variablesProxy (climate)In the study of past climates is known as paleoclimatology, climate proxies are preserved physical characteristics of the past that stand in for direct measurements , to enable scientists to reconstruct the climatic conditions that prevailed during much of the Earth's history...
.
- Marine ecologyMarine biologyMarine biology is the scientific study of organisms in the ocean or other marine or brackish bodies of water. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather...
: This division, lead by Ulrich Sommer, aims to "understand the sensitivity of marine ecosystemMarine ecosystemMarine ecosystems are among the largest of Earth's aquatic ecosystems. They include oceans, salt marsh and intertidal ecology, estuaries and lagoons, mangroves and coral reefs, the deep sea and the sea floor. They can be contrasted with freshwater ecosystems, which have a lower salt content. Marine...
s to anthropogenicAnthropogenicHuman impact on the environment or anthropogenic impact on the environment includes impacts on biophysical environments, biodiversity and other resources. The term anthropogenic designates an effect or object resulting from human activity. The term was first used in the technical sense by Russian...
and natural changes, with a mid-term focus on climate change and overexploitationOverexploitationOverexploitation, also called overharvesting, refers to harvesting a renewable resource to the point of diminishing returns. Sustained overexploitation can lead to the destruction of the resource...
of marine bio-resources." It is important to understand how much stress a given ecosystem can absorb before structural shifts occur. When a shift does occur, it is necessary to understand how this will impact the ecosystem populations and the degree to which the shift can be reversed. Structural shifts can result in invasions by harmful organisms, species collapse and a radical reconfiguring of the biogeochemical cycles. Traditional approaches group species broadly into size classes and trophic levelTrophic levelThe trophic level of an organism is the position it occupies in a food chain. The word trophic derives from the Greek τροφή referring to food or feeding. A food chain represents a succession of organisms that eat another organism and are, in turn, eaten themselves. The number of steps an organism...
s measured by productivityProductivity (ecology)In ecology, productivity or production refers to the rate of generation of biomass in an ecosystem. It is usually expressed in units of mass per unit surface per unit time, for instance grams per square metre per day. The mass unit may relate to dry matter or to the mass of carbon generated...
or biomassBiomass (ecology)Biomass, in ecology, is the mass of living biological organisms in a given area or ecosystem at a given time. Biomass can refer to species biomass, which is the mass of one or more species, or to community biomass, which is the mass of all species in the community. It can include microorganisms,...
. But to understand how ecosystems react to natural and anthropogenic stressors, specific differences in the way individual species react must also be understood, particularly where keystone speciesKeystone speciesA keystone species is a species that has a disproportionately large effect on its environment relative to its abundance. Such species play a critical role in maintaining the structure of an ecological community, affecting many other organisms in an ecosystem and helping to determine the types and...
are involved. Research within this division range from genes to ecosystems, including the "ecophysiologyEcophysiologyEcophysiology or environmental physiology is a biological discipline which studies the adaptation of organism's physiology to environmental conditions...
of key species and its genetic basis, dynamics and genetics of individual populations and of communities, interactions within and among species, structure and response of entire food webFood webA food web depicts feeding connections in an ecological community. Ecologists can broadly lump all life forms into one of two categories called trophic levels: 1) the autotrophs, and 2) the heterotrophs...
s."
- Dynamics of the ocean floor: Research is focused on "processes that shape the oceanic lithosphereOceanic lithosphereOceanic lithosphereOceanic lithosphere is typically about 50-100 km thick , while the continental lithosphere has a range in thickness from about 40 km to perhaps 200 km; the upper ~30 to ~50 km of the typical continental lithosphere is crust...
, and the impact of these processes on the environment, e.g. climate and natural hazards. These research themes are pursued in the three main geotectonic settings: divergent and convergent marginsConvergent boundaryIn plate tectonics, a convergent boundary, also known as a destructive plate boundary , is an actively deforming region where two tectonic plates or fragments of lithosphere move toward one another and collide...
and in intraplate regions. These three settings represent critical stages in the life-cycle of the ocean floor. The ocean basins are created by the rifting apart of continents. Oceanic lithosphereOceanic lithosphereOceanic lithosphereOceanic lithosphere is typically about 50-100 km thick , while the continental lithosphere has a range in thickness from about 40 km to perhaps 200 km; the upper ~30 to ~50 km of the typical continental lithosphere is crust...
then forms at mid-ocean ridgeMid-ocean ridgeA mid-ocean ridge is a general term for an underwater mountain system that consists of various mountain ranges , typically having a valley known as a rift running along its spine, formed by plate tectonics. This type of oceanic ridge is characteristic of what is known as an oceanic spreading...
s. It is subsequently modified by low and high temperature interactions with the overlying oceans, the addition of intraplate magmaMagmaMagma is a mixture of molten rock, volatiles and solids that is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and is expected to exist on other terrestrial planets. Besides molten rock, magma may also contain suspended crystals and dissolved gas and sometimes also gas bubbles. Magma often collects in...
s, the deposition of marine sediments, and tectonic processes occurring at or near transform and convergent plate margins. When it subducts at convergent margins, the dehydration of the plate induces arc volcanism that creates and modifies the continental crustContinental crustThe continental crust is the layer of igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks which form the continents and the areas of shallow seabed close to their shores, known as continental shelves. This layer is sometimes called sial due to more felsic, or granitic, bulk composition, which lies in...
and transfers climate-relevant volatiles into the atmosphere. Such continental marginContinental marginThe continental margin is the zone of the ocean floor that separates the thin oceanic crust from thick continental crust. Continental margins constitute about 28% of the oceanic area....
s are sites of sediment accumulation, fluid exchange, important resources and major geo-hazards."
Research fleet
IFM-GEOMAR operates two open ocean research vesselResearch vessel
A research vessel is a ship designed and equipped to carry out research at sea. Research vessels carry out a number of roles. Some of these roles can be combined into a single vessel, others require a dedicated vessel...
s: the 36 year old RV Poseidon (1050 GRT
Gross Register Tonnage
Gross register tonnage a ship's total internal volume expressed in "register tons", one of which equals to a volume of . It is calculated from the total permanently enclosed capacity of the vessel. The ship's net register tonnage is obtained by reducing the volume of non-revenue-earning spaces i.e...
) and the 20 year old RV Alkor (1000 GRT). In 2009, both vessels were refurbished and modernised. It also operates the research cutter, RC Littorina (168 GRT) and the research boat, RB Polarfuchs (16 GRT). In addition it operates JAGO, a three ton research submersible
Submersible
A submersible is a small vehicle designed to operate underwater. The term submersible is often used to differentiate from other underwater vehicles known as submarines, in that a submarine is a fully autonomous craft, capable of renewing its own power and breathing air, whereas a submersible is...
, the only manned research submersible in Germany, capable of diving to 400 metres, as well as a remotely operated underwater vehicle, ROV Kiel 6000 capable of diving to 6,000 metres, an autonomous underwater vehicle
Autonomous Underwater Vehicle
An autonomous underwater vehicle is a robot which travels underwater without requiring input from an operator. AUVs constitute part of a larger group of undersea systems known as unmanned underwater vehicles, a classification that includes non-autonomous remotely operated underwater vehicles...
, AUV Abyss, and a video-controlled hydraulic grab, TV-Grab. At the end of 2010, the institute took possession of ROV Phoca, a new 1.5 ton ROV with an operational working depth of 3000 metres.
External links
- Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences home page
- Organizational Structure Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences
- Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences - IFM-GEOMAR Science in Kiel. Updated 2 February 2011. Retrieved 21 July 2011.
- OceanRep - open access digital repository of IFM-GEOMAR research
- Vidoes about IFM-GEOMAR