Specialized Camera System Gives Unprecedented View of Ocean Life
Published:27 Aug.2020 Source:WHOI
Plankton are critical to ocean ecosystems and our planet. These mostly microscopic organisms—plant-like phytoplankton and tiny animals known as zooplankton—form the base of most ocean food webs. Phytoplankton also play a key role in producing oxygen and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, helping to regulate Earth’s climate.
In spite of their importance, plankton communities in the ocean are poorly understood—in part because the ocean is vast, and plankton communities vary widely by location and over time. In the past, the only way scientists could study the distribution of plankton was by towing a net from a ship. Using this method, it is impossible to know the depth at which a particular animal was collected or to reliably generalize the results from sampling in one location to a broader geographic region. In addition, many species of plankton are gelatinous and fragile, making it difficult or impossible to collect them using a net without damaging them.