Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Microtextures Of Cyanobacterial Mats In Siliciclastic Sedimentary Environments (Modern & Ancient): Applications To The Search For Life On Mars, Dina M. Bower

OES Theses and Dissertations

The current Mars Exploration Rover Program (MER) is one of NASA's most successful missions. The aim of the MER is to explore for possible life on the surface of Mars. My thesis developed new methods of how to detect and to identify microbial mats in siliciclastic sediments (modern and ancient), and to make recommendations on the applicability of MISS as biosignatures. Predominantly, I employed instrumentation portable by future rovers. To search for life on other planets, we need to have information on how this life might look. Most astrobiological studies therefore focus on Earthly analogues of life and its habitats. …

Nutrient And Carbon Dynamics In The Chesapeake Bay Outflow Plume And Their Effect On The Coastal Ocean Environment, Katherine C. Filippino

OES Theses and Dissertations

Seasonally resolved nutrient and carbon fluxes from estuaries to the coastal ocean are poorly constrained. Nutrient and carbon cycling in highly productive regions like the Chesapeake Bay outflow plume and surrounding coastal environments greatly affect our global understanding of carbon cycling. The overall questions for the research described in this dissertation stem from the need to close global carbon budgets, and obtain a fundamental understanding of nutrient dynamics in a coastal region heavily influenced by seasonality and human impacts.

Within the framework of physical characteristics of the outflow plume and through the characterization of nutrient concentrations, primary productivity rates, and …