Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz have received a five-year grant totaling $737,000 from the Heising-Simons Foundation. The funding will support a project led by Peter Weiss-Penzias and Eyal Rahav to analyze the chemical and biological makeup of fog water along the Pacific coast.
The research is part of a larger effort involving multiple institutions aimed at improving understanding of coastal fog and its implications for managing resources and ecosystems as climate conditions change. According to Weiss, “Understanding if and how fog will change as the climate warms is critical for societal planning for climate change.”
Weiss also noted that questions about what substances are present in fog—including pollutants—and how much water it contributes to systems such as agriculture are important for both public health and resource management in coastal areas.
The study will involve collecting fog water samples from 15 locations across California. Researchers are focusing on patterns in concentrations of inorganic nutrients, biological molecules like algal toxins, and chemical contaminants. Students from the Baskin School of Engineering will design and build an active fog collector at the Slugworks facility to assist with sample collection.
In addition to UC Santa Cruz, San Francisco State University, California State University Monterey Bay, UC San Diego, and Indiana University have also received funding for related research efforts.
The Heising-Simons Foundation supports projects that promote sustainable solutions in climate and clean energy, advance scientific research, improve education for young learners, and protect human rights.
