MARUM – Center for Marine Environmental Sciences at the University of Bremen

MARUM

Storytime with: Tim Freudenthal

MARUM
Dr. Tim Freudenthal, Head of Marine Technology: Ocean Floor Drilling Equipment Team

WHY is MARUM developing one-of-a-kind drilling rigs for the ocean floor?

HERE’S WHY – Oceans cover roughly two-thirds of the earth’s surface. The ocean floor conceals key information that helps researchers understand the ocean’s role in earth and climate systems better. In order to obtain core samples, expeditions use the MARUM-MeBo70 and MARUM-MeBo200 drilling rigs for the ocean floor. This equipment is one of a kind globally. It was developed by MARUM in close cooperation with industrial partners for digging out core samples. Researchers can read these samples as if they were history books, with each location telling a story about past climatic conditions. In one ocean-floor core sample, for instance, researchers found forest soil that was in excellent condition. Using it, they were able to reconstruct the West Antarctic climate of 90 million years ago.

 

WHY is there a bit of the University of Bremen at MARUM?

HERE’S WHY – MARUM coordinates the university’s high-profile area of “Marine, Polar and Climate Research”. It is where the Excellence Cluster “The Ocean Floor – Earth’s Uncharted Interface” is based. At MARUM, researchers work closely with partner institutions locally and globally and teach students.