Description
This research (ClimOcean) focuses on the study of the growth of coral and mollusk ecosystems affected by the acidification of marine and oceanic waters. The project is based on the use of radiotracers and ad hoc nuclear instrumentation techniques. Specifically, we propose to carry out a study of the influence of the acidification of the seas and oceans on the uptake of Calcium of various species of coral and bivalve molluscs, as they are organisms that build their exoskeleton or their shell through the production of calcium carbonate. We, a consolidated collaboration of nuclear physics researchers from IFIC (CSIC-Univ. of Valencia, Spain) and LNL (INFN, Legnaro, Padova, Italy) have started this study, important in the context of climate change and deterioration of marine ecosystems, in 2022 in Spain under the acronym REMO (Radiotrazadores para el estudio de Ecosistemas Marinos y Oceánicos) and in collaboration with the Oceanogràfic of Valencia, the largest aquarium in Europe. Within this contest the use of radiotracers to tackle environmental questions, in particular ocean acidification and its effect on marine ecosystems, can be an opportunity for nuclear science in Europe and, we think, an element of interest for the NuPECC Long-Range Plan.