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John Martin (oceanographer)

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John Holland Martin (February 27, 1935 – June 18, 1993), was an American oceanographer, known for his research work at the Moss Landing Marine Laboratories.

Life and career

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Born in Old Lyme, Connecticut, he is known for his research on the role of iron as a phytoplankton micronutrient, and its significance for so-called "High-Nutrient, Low Chlorophyll" regions of the oceans.[1] He further advocated the use of iron fertilization to enhance oceanic primary production and act as a sink for fossil fuel carbon dioxide. He is also known for the Martin curve, a power law which is widely used by oceanographers to describe the export to the ocean floor of particulate organic carbon (POC).[2]

John Martin died from prostate cancer at the age of 58.

Quotes

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“Give me a half tanker of iron, and I will give you an ice age.” - John Martin, from a lecture at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Martin, John H.; Fitzwater, Steve E. (1988). "Iron deficiency limits phytoplankton growth in the north-east Pacific subarctic". Nature. 331 (6154): 341–343. Bibcode:1988Natur.331..341M. doi:10.1038/331341a0. S2CID 4325562.
  2. ^ Olli, Kalle (2015). "Unraveling the uncertainty and error propagation in the vertical flux Martin curve". Progress in Oceanography. 135: 146–155. Bibcode:2015PrOce.135..146O. doi:10.1016/j.pocean.2015.05.016.
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