Rebecca Barber ’20
Computer Science
Model-based Evaluation of Bubble Injection in Air-Sea Gas Exchange Parameterizations
I performed research concerning gas exchange across the ocean’s air-sea boundary. Quantifying gas flux is paramount in measuring gas concentrations in the ocean, and gas concentrations help us calculate net community production. Net community production is a primary control on carbon distribution between the atmosphere and the ocean and, thus, has an impact on global warming. However, new air-sea gas parameterizations indicate the importance of explicitly including bubble injection to calculate gas fluxes. The purpose of my project was to assess the impact of adding a bubble-injection parametrization to the model of air-sea gas exchange. To analyze biogeochemical-model output, I programmed modules in MATLAB and designed illustrative graphs. I had an absolutely incredible experience working in the Program in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (AOS), learning MATLAB, and meeting faculty and students from fields outside of what I usually study. Working in AOS introduced me to data analysis, and it taught me the importance of these skills across several different disciplines.
* This internship is connected to the PEI Climate and Energy Grand Challenges project, “Southern Ocean Observations and Modeling.”
2017
Biodiversity and Conservation
Program in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, Princeton University
Jorge Sarmiento, George J. Magee Professor of Geoscience and Geological Engineering and Professor of Geosciences; Seth Bushinsky, Postdoctoral Research Associate, AOS