Arctic Marine Biodiversity Observation Network - Alaska Ocean Observing System
Original (non-English) name
Acronym
AMBON - AOOS
Citation
Abstract
The Arctic Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (AMBON) supports sustained biodiversity observations in the Chukchi Sea. The team, led by Dr. Katrin Iken of the University of Alaska Fairbanks, has been underway since 2015 and has a goal of documenting all species of this Arctic ecosystem from microbes to whales. Why? Because the Arctic Ocean influences global climate and connecting the water column and bottom-dwelling organisms that drive a complex food web is fundamental to understanding ecosystem processes. Dramatic temperature increases and seasonal ice loss are leading to significant changes in the structure of marine ecosystems and how they function. Chukchi Sea water masses, part of an expansive, shallow continental shelf system, support abundant primary production and diverse animal communities—on the seafloor, in the water column and at the interface of the air and ocean where world-class populations of millions of seabirds feed.