Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Olivier Marchal Front Page  |  Curriculum Vitae (external file)  |  Publications Olivier Marchal Associate Scientist w/ Tenure Geology & Geophysics Contact Information: Work: 508 289 3374 omarchal@whoi.edu Building: Clark 109A Mailing Address: Mailstop 23 Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Woods Hole, MA 02543 Research Interests & Strategy My research interests concern predominantly the large-scale circulation in the ocean, with emphasis on its variability on a range of time scales, including those which are resolved by deep-sea sediment records. I am interested in using water property measurements to estimate the circulation and in understanding the role of non-conservative processes in the distribution of chemical substances in the ocean. My research strategy operates along three lines. (1) I combine observations with models using inverse methods in order to address estimation problems in oceanography and paleoceanography. (2) I develop and apply numerical models of ocean circulation that are simplified and computationally efficient in order to isolate fundamental aspects of the circulation and study its variability on long time scales. (3) More marginally but with equal interest, I conduct laboratory experiments with rotating turntables in order to develop understanding of the dynamics of geophysical fluids. Looking for Graduate Students Estimating the kinetics of particle processes in the ocean. Particle-reactive elements such as thorium and protactinium have found a variety of application in oceanography and paleo-oceanography, including in studies of paleo-circulation. However, these applications are currently limited by our incomplete understanding of the processes affecting particles in ocean waters (aggregation, disaggregation,  remineralization, and sinking). In this project, inverse methods will be applied to estimate the kinetics of particle processes from the unprecedented data set collected along the North Atlantic section of the GEOTRACES program. The ideal student would combine skills in various areas of mathematics and statistics with a keen interest in applying these skills to problems of ocean geochemistry. Please see this paper for the type of work involved and contact me (omarchal@whoi.edu) or my collaborator Phoebe Lam (plam@whoi.edu) for further information about the project. Educational Activities I am active in education primarily through the MIT-WHOI Joint Program in Oceanography (see CV).

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