News
This page contains latest news regarding the institute. Some entries are only available in German.
In search of the “Golden Spike”: On the role of microplastics in defining the Anthropocene
In a recently published discussion paper, Juliana Ivar do Sul and Matthias Labrenz, environmental scientists at the IOW, focus on the topic of microplastics from a geological perspective. They discuss whether the omnipresent plastic particles could be used to identify the beginning of a new, not-yet formalised geological epoch, the Anthropocene, in geo-archives such as sediment cores. Moreover, microplastics could be used at a suitable location to establish the so called Golden Spike, which, by definition, is used in geology to document the beginning of an epoch, period or era.
First-time detection of glyphosate in the sea: IOW develops new method and successfully applies it to Baltic Sea samples
Glyphosate is one of the world’s most widely used weed killers. The disputed herbicide, which is suspected to be carcinogenic among other things, gets transported from the on-land application areas into rivers, which wash it into the sea. So far it was unclear, however, how much can be found in marine environments, because glyphosate and its metabolite aminomethylphosphonic acid could not be measured in saltwater due to methodological reasons. Marisa Wirth from the IOW has now developed a new method, with which both substances can reliably be measured in seawater and for the first time was able to detect glyphosate and AMPA in the Baltic Sea.
Regional consequences of last glacial climate fluctuations in ultra-high resolution with the help of climate indicators
Using a sediment core from the Black Sea, Warnemünde geologists reconstructed together with an international team how the transition into the Greenland Interstadial 10 (GI10), a climate warming 41,000 years ago, affected the Black Sea region over the course of decades. The in-depth study was made possible by a precise synchronization with the ice cores and high resolution multi-proxy analyses. Since this detailed paleo study covers time scales comparable to those of the recent global warming, it contributes to the understanding of relevant processes.
The long arm of the Atlantic: How the climate of Northern Europe is influenced from afar
Climate researchers at the IOW for the first time were able to show with the help of statistical analyses, how fluctuations in the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) affected the meteorological phenomenon of the North Atlantic Oscillation in the course of the last millennium. They also could establish a link between AMO and climate variables in the Baltic Sea region, such as the spread of sea ice, surface water temperature or river inflow.
» Read more … The long arm of the Atlantic: How the climate of Northern Europe is influenced from afar
Marine fungi in focus: Excellent young researcher starts Emmy Noether group at IOW
On August 01, 2020, Isabell Klawonn, Ph.D., who is specialised in microbial interactions and element fluxes in marine ecosystems, started working at the IOW. She will establish a new research group at the institute to investigate the largely unknown role of marine fungi, aided by the prestigious Emmy Noether Programme for outstanding young researchers, which is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG).
» Read more … Marine fungi in focus: Excellent young researcher starts Emmy Noether group at IOW
Contact persons in all matters of press and public relation at the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research are
Dr. Kristin Beck
Tel.: 0381 5197 135
E-Mail: kristin.beck@io-warnemuende.de
Dr. Barbara Hentzsch
Tel.: 0381 5197 102
E-Mail: barbara.hentzsch@io-warnemuende.de
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