PaNDA (Paleo-Nutrient Dynamics in the Eurasian Arctic Ocean)

The project “Paleo-Nutrient Dynamics in the Eurasian Arctic Ocean” (PaNDA) investigates nutrient cycling within high latitude environments during past climate transitions, and is conducted by Allyson Tessin (Marie Curie Research Fellow).

The Arctic Ocean is currently one of the most rapidly warming regions of the world. Among the most striking effects of this warming is a drastic reduction in sea ice, with some models predicting a seasonally ice free Arctic Ocean by 2050. These changes occurring within the Arctic Ocean will have complex effects on nutrient availability and, subsequently, primary productivity.

However, different model scenarios for the biogeochemical response to anthropogenic climate change within the Arctic Ocean predict either elevated or reduced nutrient supplies, illustrating the need for improved constraints on how nutrient delivery and benthic remineralization will evolve under warmer conditions.

The sedimentary record provides an opportunity to reconstruct biogeochemical cycles during past intervals of sea ice minima to help predict what may occur in the future.

Using sediment cores from north of Svalbard, Allyson reconstructs past changes in micro- (Fe) and macro- (phosphorus (P), nitrogen, and silica) nutrient delivery and recycling in response to climatic and oceanographic perturbations. For more details, see https://www.allysontessin.com/research.