Australian National University student Kelly James headed to the island of Catalina, off Los Angeles, in 2008 to culture microscopic marine organisms with the potential to shed light on past climates. James is part of a team led by Stephen Eggins, of the Research School of Earth Sciences, studying small marine animals called foraminifera.

The team is investigating the uptake of trace elements, such as magnesium, strontium and barium into the calcium carbonate shells of the animals. The aim is to find out whether foraminifer can be used to gauge the nutrient content of the water in which they grow, and how this is reflected in their shell chemistry.

James and colleagues also want to know if the uptake of trace elements can be used to monitor seawater temperature. If it can, the fossil skeletons of foraminifera in marine sediments could be used to investigate past climates in work that will aid in the understanding of the role of oceans in controlling climate. This is critical to the understanding of the ocean’s role in moderating global warming.

James switched from a Victorian university to ANU after a stint in Canberra as a Summer Research Scholar. She is enrolled in the Bachelor of Global and Ocean Sciences (Honours) degree offered by the College of Science. The degree is a multidisciplinary program spanning all scientific disciplines from biology, through the earth sciences to physics. The program, which has a big research component, comes at a time of growing demand for scientists educated in the field in the greenhouse world. The 2008 Catalina trip was part of the “special topic” component of the course in which students can choose to study a subject of their interest in their third year of the degree. She says such travel opportunities for undergraduate students are “unthinkable” at other universities.