Millie Watts: How did I become involved in Ocean Science?
I have always loved geography, it was my favourite subject at school and an obvious choice for A-Level, and when I discovered I could take Geology and Environmental Science as well, a career in earth sciences seemed the absolute right choice for me.
Me in Iceland, 2010
I studied with the Open University from home for my bachelors degree in Geosciences, which involved a lot of online study, but also some fantastic fieldcourses, and the opportunity to cover a broad range of topics. Whilst I enjoyed the oceans based courses, I have always been a geologist at heart, and the courses that taught me how to reconstruct ancient oceanic environments from fossils, and particularly past climate from ocean sediments had me hooked.
After spending several years teaching A-Level geography and geology in Somerset, I decided it was time to indulge my interests, and head back to university. In 2012 I started a Masters at Swansea University in Environmental Dynamics and Climate Change, which covered a broad range of topics relating to how our climate has changed over the last 2.6 million years, how it may continue to change and how we know where and when these changes will take place. Our impact on the planet is staggering, it is detectable in sediments from all over the world, and we still dont fully understand what these changes will mean for our future.
A recent fieldtrip to the high arctic tundra of Svalbard: this was taken at Isfjorden Radio, a remote former listening station now converted to a remote classroom for UNIS (University centre in Svalbard) and luxury hotel! The flat plain in the photo is actually a series of raised beaches used to reconstruct sea level. Unfortunately this is one of the regions most at risk from climate change due to its unique location at 78° North, and the vulnerable oceans surrounding Svalbard.
One of the changes that needs to be better understood and quantified, is how we are changing the behaviour of the oceans. We have observed rapid change from direct measurements over the last 40 years, but we need to understand if these changes are anomalous, or are they part of the natural variability of the oceans. This is where my science comes in: palaeoceanography. Our records from instrumental measurements give us a 40 year history at best, but the oceans are the great recorders of the world, everything ends up in the sediments, and once you learn how to read them, it becomes clear that the ocean is not stable, it changes, and these changes are large, unpredictable and have some serious consequences for man.
Each of these layers represents a deep sea event, part of my work will to work out when, and how big the landslides were.
When a PhD at NOC came up at the end of my Masters, the subject seemed perfect for me: submarine landslides and climate change. I am looking at some of the biggest rapid changes to our oceans (the 8.2 ka BP cooling event) and the largest landslide-tsunamis (The Storegga Slide), and part of my PhD is assessing whether the changes we have started in the oceans could lead to more catastrophic events. The Storegga slide was a giant landslide, over 3000 cubic kilometers of sediment moved in one go, generating a tsunami 10m high in Scotland, and powerful enough to reach Greenland. This happened just after a very rapid climate change event, and we need to understand if these two events are connected.
The way in which this will be achieved, is through the study of sediment cores from the Northern North Atlantic. I was lucky enough to take part in cruise 64PE391 aboard the Dutch vessel RV Pelagia in July 2014. We spent a month at sea and recoved over 500m of new sediment cores that will help place large submarine landslides in context, and give them accurate dates, so we can relate these potential disasters to periods of climate change. (Cruise blog: http://slidesinthedeep.blogspot.co.uk).
The Arctic Landslide Tsunami PhD team aboard the RV Pelagia in July 2014
One of the real highlights of studying at NOC is the opportunity for fieldwork and collaboration with other universities. This year, three of the Arctic Landslide Tsunami team spent a month at UNIS, the worlds most northerly university, studying climate change in the high arctic, and how to connect the marine and terrestrial records of change. We had a great time, despite some pretty poor weather for our fieldwork, which unfortunately was cancelled. After an unsuccessful attempt to return home in a small boat, the Norwegian Coastguard were kind enough to pick us up!
Josh and I celebrating our return to Longyearbyen after an unexpected ride from the Coastguard!
Studying for a PhD is a fabulous experience, hard work for a lot of the time, and a long road to get here, but every so often you find yourself in somewhere truly spectacular, or discover something in your data that helps unravel the history of the planet. Be sure to check out the courses on offer at Southampton and the Open University, and feel free to ask questions!
@GeoMillie