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‘Oceans are hugely complex’: modelling marine microbes is key to climate forecasts

Microorganisms are the engines that drive most marine processes. Ocean modelling must evolve to take their biological complexity into account.
By
  1. Alessandro Tagliabue

    1. Alessandro Tagliabue is a professor of ocean sciences at the University of Liverpool, UK.

Satellite image of swirling phytoplankton blooms in green and blue colours

Swirls of phytoplankton blooms (green and light blue) in the South Atlantic Ocean in 2021. Credit: NASA/ZUMA Wire/Shutterstock

Marine microorganisms are crucial for ocean health. Bacteria, archaea, fungi, algae and viruses make up most of the biomass in the seas and form the base of marine food webs. They support nutrient cycling and drive crucial biogeochemical processes, including key steps in the carbon, nitrogen and silicon cycles.

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Nature 623, 250-252 (2023)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-03425-4

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Competing Interests

A.T. is UK representative on the GEOTRACES scientific steering committee and co-organizer of BioGeoSCAPES scientific scoping workshops.

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