| Elizabeth Gibbs - Thompson Middle School (Newport, RI) | |
| Research Experience: | Antarctic Sewage Pollution Impact and Recovery Experiments (ASPIRE) program - Project Web Site Elizabeth's online journal |
| Research Objectives: | Antarctica is relatively isolated from human impacts. Most people who come to the Antarctic are visitors or stay for short periods of time to support research. However, even the small human populations have an effect on Antarctic life. This research focuses on one of the direct impacts of humans in the Antarctic: sewage. McMurdo Station is the largest base on the continent, housing more than 1100 people during the summer months. Up until 2003, sewage was discharged directly into the ocean. ASPIRE scientists have designed a large scale experiment to test the ecological changes due to organic enrichment, burial disturbance, and microbial growth; all these factors are intensified by human activities in the Antarctic. |
| Research funded by: | National Science Foundation (Office of Polar Programs) |
| Host Researcher: | Stacy Kim - Moss Landing Marine Laboratories |
| Return to "Research Experiences" | |
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ARMADA Project Office of Marine Programs Graduate School of Oceanography University of Rhode Island armada@gso.uri.edu |