• Ocean optics
• Phytoplankton physiology and ecology
• Remote-sensing of ocean color and biogeochemistry
• Polar ecosystems

My broad interest is in understanding the propagation of light within the ocean, which has implications for energy transfer, primary production and biogeochemical cycling, animal vision and strategies for camouflage.

The approach utilized in our lab includes field studies of ocean optical properties in conjunction with biogeochemical measurements, laboratory studies on absorption and scattering of light by various seawater constituents (dissolved materials and suspended particles), radiative transfer modeling to understand variations in the transmission of light into and within the ocean, and the development of algorithms for ocean color remote-sensing.