Sabtu, 14 Juli 2012

Plankton Taxa Count Exceeds 1.5 Million


According to the conclusions of a new, large-scale scientific investigation, it would appear that the world's oceans contain more than 1.5 million different plankton taxa. The number is still preliminary, as it is based on early analyses of samples collected from a variety of locations.

The samples were harvested during the Tara Oceans scientific expeditions. Full results of the massive investigation will not be available for another few years, as scientists catalog all the lifeforms they've collected. The work ahead is monumental, Science Now reports.

The 36-meter-tall research vessel Tara returned from its 362-day trip on March 31. Over the past three and a half months, scientists conducted a preliminary count of the microorganism types captured from the water, and came up with this massive number.

The multi-disciplinary research team behind the work is made up physical oceanographers, marine biologists, imaging specialists, molecular biologists, bioinformaticists and modelers.

Via: Plankton Taxa Count Exceeds 1.5 Million

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