What does the ocean mean to me?

Hello everyone!

I am going to share with you some pictures from the oceans which are representative for me. My area of expertise is the deep-sea so I am going to focus on that. Next week it will be your turn to tell us what the oceans mean to you!

Although a scientist myself, when I hear the words “deep-sea” I find it hard not to think of the angler fish. Of course, this truly vast environment has much more to display, but the angler fish is nevertheless iconic.

James Cook is a UK research ship going all over the world to study the oceans. Having been there myself as part of my PhD, I feel it is inextricably linked with oceans.

No, it is not a picture from a snowing night. This is the so called “marine snow” and represents the main food source for organisms in the deep-sea. For more info about it see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_snow.

This software-generated image shows that the seafloor is not flat. There are sea mountains, valleys, hills etc. Abyssal hills in particular, are the most common landform on earth! The view from top of one hill must be breathtaking!

One of my PhD’s main focuses is to look at Foraminifera. Xenophyophores (see picture) are associated organisms and cover much of the seafloor at great depths. Truly spectacular organisms, worth knowing.

Keep an eye on the blog over the next for more posts from the facilitators, educators of the course (#UoSFLOceans) and researchers of the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton.

Image credits:
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/anglerfish/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RRS_James_Cook
http://www.seos-project.eu/modules/oceancurrents/oceancurrents-c03-p04.html
http://oceansjsu.com/105d/exped_mapping/ridge.html
http://everythingisweird.wordpress.com/2012/03/27/what-is-the-mariana-trench/

11 Responses to "What does the ocean mean to me?"

Angela Barrs says:

October 29, 2014 at 4:23 pm

Do plastics get into marine snow?

Reply
Damien McGarrigle says:

February 4, 2014 at 8:52 pm

I have had the pleasure of being a scuba diver for a number of years and I have always been fascinated by the ecosystems and the diversity of the creatures and how each has its own niche. The Angler Fish always reminds me of the stone fish I saw when diving in the red sea. A real ugly brute but so well camouflaged that he was almost impossible to see. It is also incredible to imagine the pressures that the creatures of the abyss have inflicted on them at 30 metres it is extremely exhausting on a human body. Will be interested to see the different ways that they thrive.

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Paris Stefanoudis says:

January 31, 2014 at 10:19 am

Hello Carol,

I appreciate your support to us, ocean scientists.

Many points you are raising regarding the relationship of humans and oceans and its current status quo today are going to be discussed in week 6.

Hope you will enjoy the course

Reply
Carol Horne says:

January 31, 2014 at 10:14 am

Always fascinated by the sea as a child on our annual 2 week holiday to Bognor (of all places!). But scared too – the power of the waves and the undertow. I still don’t feel comfortable right at the interface between sea and air where I feel the 2 media get mixed up and confuse me – I’m not a flying nor a swimming organism. But, SCUBA diving opened an entire universe to me at the age of 60 when I passed my OD qualification. I knew then what it felt to cavort, and to fly. If I had one wish it is that I could have another lifetime and spend it studying the oceans. Additionally to the breathtaking aspect of diving and the privilege of witnessing the teeming life that so few people get to see and comprehend, I feel sad and scared that humans have maybe pushed the oceans to such an endangered place – from which they may never recover – where our very existence is threatened.

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Paris Stefanoudis says:

January 30, 2014 at 4:37 pm

Great site. I know people from the National Oceanography Centre that work on coccolithophores!

Many Foraminifera that I found in the Northeast Atlantic use coccoliths as part of their (body) wall. Never thought that they would inspire people for ceramic designs though! That is really interesting.

Reply
1. Sue wells says:
  
  January 31, 2014 at 8:26 am
  
  I thought formins were silica and coccoliths were ‘chalk’
  .?
  
  Reply
  1. Paris Stefanoudis says:
    
    January 31, 2014 at 9:38 am
    
    Hello Sue,
    
    you are right about the Coccolithofores. But the test (wall that encloses the body) of Foraminifera can be made of many things: calcium carbonate, organic material, mineral grains, silica and so on. There are even other more strange-looking forams which are tube-like and contain small mineral grains and mud. Here is a link of one of these groups, called Komokiaceans:
    http://eol.org/pages/2910683/media
    
    Reply
    1. Sue Wells says:
      
      January 31, 2014 at 10:24 am
      
      so much fascinating information already !
      and I have enrolled on eol…it looks as if it could be very useful!
      
      Reply
Sue wells says:

January 30, 2014 at 4:25 pm

Hi…ah yes ..I have been fascinated by the amazing shapes of Foraminifera
And coccoliths…..and have used them as inspiration for ceramic designs….
And the ehux pages as a text exercise for a word processing test!

http://www.soes.soton.ac.uk/staff/tt/

Looking forward to learning more!

Reply
John Mills says:

January 30, 2014 at 11:15 am

From my very limited experience of SCUBA diving in the Bahamas where I worked as a teacher during the early 70’s I have been fascinated by the richness and diversity of marine life. Although 40 years ago I remember doing a drop off dive and looking down into the increasing darkness, out of my reach for sure. Maybe the next weeks will bring more of that world to me. I hope so.

Reply
1. Paris Stefanoudis says:
  
  January 30, 2014 at 11:23 am
  
  Hello John!
  You can be sure that in the next weeks, especially week 3 and 6 of the course, we will be discussing facts about deep sea life and the fascinating animals that live there.
  
  Reply

What does the ocean mean to me?

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