Weekend #Plankton Factoid 🦠🦐

The equinox has returned, so let's talk spring phytoplankton blooms. Temperature and light has increased to create stratification (warm water layer floats over a denser one). Algae is kept near the surface, growing quickly without sinking into the depths. This is the Sverdrup (1953) Critical Depth Hypothesis.

Dr. David Shull at Western Washington University has built some great online exercise tools to play with Sverdrup's model.
https://cii.wwu.edu/shull/algaeBloom/index.html
#science