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What is the context of this research?

Foraminifera occupy a geological range from the early Cambrian to the present day. Their well preserved shells, high relative abundance, and short response time to changing environmental conditions make foraminifera ideal proxies for environmental conditions, as well as paleoclimate reconstructions.

We aim to identify, examine, and quantify calcareous and agglutinated foraminiferal faunas from a sediment core taken from Greenland's continental shelf. According to estimations of sediment accumulation rates, our samples will span the past five decades. Variability in fauna and species richness may reflect changes in the extent and duration of seasonal sea ice, as well as changes in ocean chemistry, including ocean acidification.







What is the significance of this project?

Due to anthropogenic climate change, the Arctic region is undergoing rapid changes. This includes a decline in sea ice extent, increased mass loss of from the Greenland ice sheet, and ocean acidification. Models predict that this region will experience the strongest temperature increases in the future due to polar amplification.

The study of foraminifera is of great importance for the development, improvement, and validation of climate models that predict scenarios for future climate. More knowledge about the relationship between the responses of the benthic foraminiferal fauna to various environmental changes are needed. This knowledge will improve our understanding of current and future climatic changes.

What are the goals of the project?

In order to improve the application of Arctic benthic foraminifera as proxy indicators of modern and past environments, we aim to classify foraminiferal fauna and abundance within nine sediment samples. Firstly, in order to accurately date the sediment, we must verify the sediment accumulation rate by radioactive isotope analysis. Then, to separate the tests from the surrounding sediment, sieving techniques will be used. Foraminifera will be classified primarily on the composition and morphology of the shells. Imaging of the samples will be performed using a field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM). The analysis of results in regards to recent climate change will utilize sea ice satellite data, as well as outputs from a regional climate model for Greenland and the vicinity.