Microbes and plankton

The open ocean, and the Sargasso Sea in particular, is home to a diverse collection of organisms. Ongoing research seeks to understand these species, which include viruses, bacteria, archaea, protists and animals, and to detail their role in marine ecosystems.

Even though they are too small to see with the naked eye, micro-organisms dominate the ocean, and indeed all of Earth. Marine microbes influence the biology and chemistry of the ocean, and thereby the entire food web as well as the ocean’s climate-related biochemical cycles. 

Microbial oceanography is a rapidly evolving field, and BIOS-SCOPE aims to make significant research advances in our scientific understanding. This five-year multi-institutional research collaboration leverages the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS) and its associated research as well as our capabilities via the Microbial Ecology Laboratory.