RSS 1.0WHOI Theses
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WHOI's educational role, at the graduate level, was formalized in 1968 with a change in its charter and the signing of an agreement with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for a Joint Program leading to doctoral (Ph.D. or Sc.D.) or engineer's degrees. Joint master's degrees are also offered in selected areas of the program. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is also authorized to grant doctoral degrees independently.
New theses are added as they are published.
Recent Submissions
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Wave-, wind-, and tide-driven circulation at a well-mixed ocean inlet
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-06)The effects of waves, wind, and bathymetry on tidal and subtidal hydrodynamics at unstratified, shallow New River Inlet, NC, are evaluated using field observations and numerical simulations. Tidal flows are ebb-dominated ... -
Alexandrium catenella cyst dynamics in a coastal embayment : temperature dependence of dormancy, germination, and bloom Initiation
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-06)Blooms of the dinoflagellate Alexandrium catenella cause paralytic shellfish poisoning syndrome and present an expanding public health threat. They are inoculated through the germination of benthic cysts, a process ... -
The geochemistry of methane isotopologues
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-06)This thesis documents the origin, distribution, and fate of methane and several of its isotopic forms on Earth. Using observational, experimental, and theoretical approaches, I illustrate how the relative abundances of ... -
Pteropod shell condition, locomotion, and long-term population trends in the context of ocean acidification and environmental change
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-06)Thecosome pteropods are planktonic mollusks that form aragonite shells and that may experience increased dissolution and other adverse effects due to ocean acidification. This thesis focuses on assessing the possible ... -
Geophysical and petrological constraints on ocean plate dynamics
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-06)This thesis investigates the formation and subsequent motion of oceanic lithospheric plates through geophysical and petrological methods. Ocean crust and lithosphere forms at mid-ocean ridges as the underlying asthenosphere ... -
Ciliate micrograzer dynamics of the New England Shelf
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-06)Protists play important roles in grazing and nutrient recycling, but quantifying these roles has been hindered by difficulties in collecting, culturing, and observing these often-delicate cells. During long-term deployments ... -
Studies of lateral dispersion in the ocean
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 1998-09)This thesis is written in two parts. The first part deals with the problem oflateral dispersion due to mesoscale eddies in the open ocean, and the interaction between the mesoscale strain and horizontal diffusion on ... -
A model of the temporal and spatial distribution of carbon monoxide in the mixed layer
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 1994-06)A field experiment demonstrated the presence of a diurnal cycle in the concentration of carbon monoxide ([CO]) in the upper ocean at the BATS site. A series of laboratory experiments and numerical simulations were carried ... -
Instabilities and radiation of thin, baroclinic jets
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 1982-06)Oceanic fluctuations are dependent on geographical location. Near intense currents, the eddy field is highly energetic and has broad meridional extent. It is likely that the energy arises from instabilities of the intense ... -
Tidal distortion in shallow estuaries
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 1984-03)The offshore tide becomes distorted as it propagates into shallow inlet/estuarine systems. Time asymmetries develop in the rise and fall of sea surface with consequent time and magnitude asymmetries in tidal currents. ... -
Capturing dynamics of marine inorganic carbon fluxes from diurnal to decadal timescales
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-02)The marine carbon cycle plays an important role in regulating Earth’s climate. The vastness of the open ocean and the large variability in the coastal ocean provide obstacles to accurately quantify storage and transport ... -
Spatiotemporal population genomics of marine species : invasion, expansion, and connectivity
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-02)Every genome tells a story. This dissertation contains four such stories, focused on shared themes of marine population dynamics and rapid change, with an emphasis on invasive marine species. Biological invasions are ... -
Geochemical controls on the distribution and composition of biogenic and sedimentary carbon
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-02)Organic carbon (OC) preserved in marine sediments acts as a reduced carbon sink that balances the global carbon cycle. Understanding the biogeochemical mechanisms underpinning the balance between OC preservation and ... -
The remineralization of marine organic matter by diverse biological and abiotic processes
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-02)While aerobic respiration is typically invoked as the dominant mass-balance sink for organic matter in the upper ocean, many other biological and abiotic processes can degrade particulate and dissolved substrates on ... -
Geophysical and geochemical constraints on the evolution of oceanic lithosphere from formation to subduction
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-02)This thesis investigates the evolution of the oceanic lithosphere in a broad sense from formation to subduction, in a focused case at the ridge, and in a focused case proximal to subduction. In general, alteration of the ... -
Reconstructing deglacial ocean ventilation using radiocarbon : data and inverse modeling
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-02)Significant changes occurred during the last deglaciation (roughly 10-20 thousand years (ka) before present) throughout the climate system. The ocean is a large reservoir of carbon and heat, however, its role during the ... -
Linking microbial metabolism and organic matter cycling through metabolite distributions in the ocean
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-02)Key players in the marine carbon cycle are the ocean-dwelling microbes that fix, remineralize, and transform organic matter. Many of the small organic molecules in the marine carbon pool have not been well characterized ... -
The cobalt cycle in the Tropical Pacific Ocean
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-02)Although over a dozen elements are needed to support phytoplankton growth, only a few are considered to be growth-limiting. As the central atom in vitamin B12, cobalt is crucial for metabolism, but its status as a limiting ... -
Coral reef soundscapes : spatiotemporal variability and links to species assemblages
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-02)Coral reefs are biodiverse ecosystems that are at risk of degradation as a result of environmental changes. Reefs are constantly in a state of flux: the resident species assemblages vary considerably in space and time. ... -
Understanding terrestrial organic carbon export : a time-series approach
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-02)Terrestrial organic carbon (OC) erosion, remineralization, transport through river networks, and burial in marine sediments is a major pathway of the global carbon cycle. However, our ability to constrain these processes ...
