Microalgae vertical flux in the Svalbard seasonal ice zone RiD ID 10889 and 10900

Two field campaigns will be completed in Billefjorden, through collaboration with the Czech Center for Polar Ecology (CPE) station in Petuniabukta (Nostoc field station), to study microalgae and vertical carbon export in the seasonal sea ice zone of Svalbard. 24-hour sediment traps will be deployed over 5 days in spring (between 28.04.18 - 05.05.18) and in summer (between 15.07.18 - 21.07.18), to study the species composition and carbon content in sinking microalgae from the sea ice and the water column. Changes with sea ice melt, glacial runoff, and nutrient changes will also be assessed. In collaboration with Tobias Vonnahme (owner for RiS project 10889, UiT), Ulrike Diedrich (UiT), and Josef Elster (CPE), we may be able to discover not only the algal species that sink or stay afloat, but also their activity and health conditions. Therefore, using molecular high-throughput sequencing, fluorescent staining and lipid analyses, we may reveal why certain algal groups will sink or float during a spring bloom in a seasonally ice covered fjord.