The Bermuda Biological Station for Research (BBSR) received some international recognition at a scientific conference last week.

Ocean and atmospheric research carried out at the BBSR, including the work of Hydrostation 'S', the world's longest-running continuous data collection site anywhere on the open ocean, was the subject of a special session at the inaugural Ocean Research Conference in Hawaii.

The session was entitled "The Role of Bermuda-based Studies in our Understand of Ocean and Atmospheric Processes".

"This session focused on the history and significant scientific achievements that have been accomplished in this part of the Atlantic Ocean off Bermuda," said session organiser and BBSR director Dr. Tony Knap. "The conference allowed us to bring together many distinguished scientists who have collaborated with BBSR over the years."

BBSR alumnus Dr. Anthony Michaels, now the director of the Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies at the University of Southern California, opened the session by recognising the importance of BBSR's ongoing ocean and atmospheric measurement programmes.

"Not only have these programmes helped to establish a base of scientific knowledge in marine and atmospheric science, but they have led to ground-breaking changes in the paradigms of the field," he said.

The session went on to focus on the findings of a number of ongoing time-series and observation programmes at BBSR, including the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS) and the Bermuda Testbed Mooring (BTM) program.

Since 1994, the BTM programme has provided scientists with data spanning minutes to years of oceanographic phenomena, such as the living patterns of microscopic organisms and the passing of storms.

The BATS programme measures biological, chemical and physical aspects of the Sargasso Sea off Bermuda. This collection of oceanographic data has made significant contributions to the scientific understanding of the ocean's role in global climate change.

Hydrostation "S", BATS sister site, was especially acknowledged during the session in honour of its anniversary of providing 50 years of continuous time-series measurements.

BBSR associate research scientist Dr. Peter Sedwick, who has studied the deposition of trace metals and other particles in the ocean as a result of atmospheric processes at BBSR since 2001, closed the session with a presentation on land-to-ocean transport of microbes and iron in soil dust.

Scientists from around the world assembled at the conference to highlight new advances in all aspects of aquatic research, including engineering, public policy and marine research.