University of New England

Marine Biology Student Studies UltravioletLight’s Effects on Phytoplankton on Antarctic Expedition

Once again, University of New England marine biology major Ashley Below has returning to the Antarctic aboard the research vessel/icebreaker Nathaniel B. Palmer during a 39-day cruise.

She departed on December 10th, 2004 and returned January 25th, 2005. She performed the same type of research she did on the first cruise. This most recent cruise was during the period of high phytoplankton density in the Ross Sea, whereas the first cruise was during the high period of ozone depletion. (Read Below's trip blog.)

Aboard her first cruise, Below was the youngest researcher aboard the research vessel/icebreaker Nathaniel B. Palmer during a 24-day research expedition to the Antarctic in October and November 2003.

Below, a junior at the time, joined the cruise as research assistant to Joaquim Goes, Ph.D., of the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, a UNE affiliate. Goes’ research team was studying how increased ultraviolet light affects the chemical composition of the principal species of Antarctic phytoplankton.

Antarctica is subjected to particularly high levels of UV light due to a patch of thinning ozone located directly above it. Phytoplankton are an important source of food in the ocean.

Dr. Goes, with the help of Below and another research assistant, was studying the changes in phytoplankton fatty acid, amino acid, and carbohydrate contents to better understand how this may impact the growth of animals high in the food chain.

Additionally, they employed sediment traps to observe the material that sinks to the bottom of the ocean. This allowed them to study how much carbon is sequestered by phytoplankton, as well as how compositional changes affect which species dominate the Ross Sea.

The National Science Foundation funded the research as part of a program to study how decreasing ozone levels will affect the food web at different levels as well as the carbon cycle in the ocean.

Experiencing the Antarctic

Below was fascinated by the Antarctic during the trips.

“The wildlife was magnificent to see,” she relates. “Penguins and seals would curiously look up at us as we crushed through the ice on the boat. The sky was mostly cloudy, but that still didn't hinder the intense rays of the sun coming down. I still can't believe that at midnight it was just becoming dark. The length of day was most remarkable and something I looked forward to before going down.”

She also learned a great deal about marine research, including how best laid plans can go awry.

The first trip was supposed to last 48-days, taking the 30 researchers from Christchurch New Zealand to the Ross Sea, a relatively ice free body of water off the coast of McMurdo Station, about 69 degrees latitude.

The researchers expected to spend about 30 days in the Ross Sea, but one of the ship’s engines had problems, and the vessel could not get through the thick Antarctic ice to its destination. Instead Dr. Goes’ team only got to spend about four days conducting their research in open ocean about 100 kilometers northeast of the Ross Sea.

“We spent most of the time traveling and working on the equipment,” Below explains. “But it was a good dry run and enabled us to work out some kinks in the experiments.” Dr. Goes has asked Below to accompany him on a second Antarctic cruise winter 2004-05 to continue the research.

Taking Advantage of Internships

Below, who grew up Northbrook, Illinois, has taken full advantage of the opportunities for research internships while at UNE. For her expedition to the Antarctic, for instance, she received nine hours of internship credit.

It was during her first internship spring semester of her freshman year that she first assisted Dr. Goes at the Bigelow Laboratory in West Boothbay Harbor, Maine. She worked in his lab and accompanied him on a 14-day cruise on the research vessel Cape Hatteras to study phytoplankton in the Sargasso Sea off Bermuda.

“Because of our affiliation with Bigelow, they will pick UNE students first for available internships,” Below explains. “You get internship credits for it, which is really nice.” As part of the Bigelow internships, students do research, write a journal, make a presentation, and meet with UNE’s biological sciences internship coordinator, Cynthia Simon.

Kennedy Space Center

Following her first cruise with Dr. Goes, Below successfully competed for a six-week summer internship at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, where she was one of 30 interns from around the nation.

“We all worked with scientists at the Kennedy Space Center,” she explains. “I worked on wading birds. Eleven thousand of the 14,000 acres where the space center is located is national wildlife refuge.” Below worked on an ecological team studying the refuge’s fish densities, important as a food source for the wading birds.

NASA paid all expenses during the six weeks, and Below received six UNE elective credits for the experience.

Walt Disney World

In the spring of 2004, Below interned at Disney World in Orlando in the marine mammal department, where she worked primarily with dolphins and manatees.

She prepared the daily dietary needs of the dolphins and manatees. Valuable experience in public speaking was gained through numerous daily presentations to the guests about the manatees that the Living Seas was rehabilitating for release back in to the wild.

“I met a vast array of people in the world through interactions with the guests and I was also able to meet numerous people in the field of marine mammal studies," she says. "It truly is remarkable to see how small of it is. Professionals really do know each other from all over the world.”

Her plans for the future are still up in the air. “I’ve looked at marine mammals and marine mammal training,” she explains. “As of right now I would like to do some type of research. I might wait a year, get a job and then go to graduate school. I do definitely plan on going to grad school. I like to travel so I will be looking at possibly going outside the country. I’ve heard Wales has good programs.”

(Last updated 1/05)