GEOMAR  Somes, Christopher

Dr. Christopher Somes

 

Scientist at Research Unit Biogeochemical Modelling

photo

Office:
Room: 4.311
Tel.: +49 431 600-2053
E-Mail: csomes(at)geomar.de

Address:
GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel
Wischhofstr. 1-3
24148 Kiel, Germany

Websites:
BlueSky (@SomesOcean.bsky.social)
ResearchGate
ORCID

CV download

Research Bio

I am a scientist interested in understanding how ocean biology and chemistry are affected by environmental change such as pollution and climate. I use global Earth system climate models to predict their response and associated feedbacks on the Earth’s climate system. My research focuses on analyzing and interpreting elemental isotopic ratios to gain insights and constraints on marine biogeochemical cycling and ecosystem dynamics in the modern ocean, as well as during past climate change events recorded in ocean sediments. This helps us to better understand the impacts of climate change on marine biology and chemistry, and thus improve our predictions of the future ocean and climate.

Research Interests

  • Climate change feedbacks associated with marine biogeochemistry in the past, present, and future ocean
  • Impact of anthropogenic nutrient pollutants on ocean deoxygenation and marine ecosystems
  • Nutrient co-limitation of marine phytoplankton growth
  • Isotopic constraints and insights on ocean biogeochemical cycling and marine ecosystem dynamics
  • Development of ocean biogeochemical, ecosystem, and Earth system models

Current Projects

ISOIRON (DFG page)

Isotopic constraints on global marine iron cycling, ocean productivity and deoxygenation

  • German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)
  • Position: Principal Investigator
  • 2023-2026

ISODEG (DFG page)

Isotopic constraints on declining marine nutrient inventories weakening the soft-tissue biological carbon pump during the last deglaciation

  • German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)
  • Position: Principal Investigator
  • 2021-2025

RETAKE II (project page)

CO2 removal by alkalinity enhancement: potential, benefits, and risks

  • Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)
  • Position: Associate Member
  • 2024-2027

Submitted Preprints / In Press Articles

  • De Sisto M., Somes, C.J., Landolfi A., MacDougall A.H., (in press), Projecting atmospheric N2O rise until the end of the 21st century: An Earth system model study, Environmental Research Letters, https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ad8c6c

  • Li N., Somes C.J., Landolfi A., Chien C.-T., Pahlow M., Oschlies A. (2024), Global impact of benthic denitrification on marine N2 fixation and primary production simulated by a variable stoichiometry Earth system model, Biogeosciences, 21, 4361-4380 https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-4361-2024

  • Wood R.A., Baker J.A., Beaugrand G., Boutin J., Conversi A., Donner R.V., Frenger I., Goberville E., Hayashida H., Koeve W., Kvale K., Landolfi A., Maslowski W., Oschlies A., Ramonaou A., Somes C.J., Stocker T.F., Swingedeouw D (in press), Opportunities for Earth observation to inform risk management for ocean tipping points, Surveys in Geophysics, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10712-024-09859-3

  • Hoogakker B. et al. (accepted), Review and syntheses: Review of proxies for low-oxygen paleoceanographic reconstructions, EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2981

  • Heinze C. et al. (submitted preprint), Review and syntheses: Abrupt ocean biogeochemical change under human-made climatic forcing - warming, acidification, and deoxygenation, Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2023-182

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Theses

  • Somes, C. J. (2013). Nitrogen Isotopes in the Global Ocean. Doctoral (PhD) dissertation, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, Kiel, Germany, 141 pp. (url)
  • Somes, C. J. (2009). Nitrogen isotopes in a global ocean biogeochemical model : constraints on the coupling between denitrification and nitrogen fixation. Master's thesis, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA, 72 pp., (url)

Education

  • Ph.D, Oceanography, GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research/Kiel University, dissertation: "Nitrogen Isotopes in the Global Ocean", 2013
  • M.Sc., Oceanography, College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, thesis: "Nitrogen Isotopes in a Global Ocean Biogeochemical Model", 2010
  • B.Sc., Physics (Geophysics option), Oregon State University, thesis: "Modeling instabilities of the global thermohaline circulation and its effect on the Pacific Ocean oxygen minimum zone", 2006
  • A.Eng., Software Engineering Technology, Oregon Institute of Technology, 2003