Michael John Robert Fasham,
FRS[1] (29 May 1942 – 7 June 2008)[3] was a British
oceanographer and
ecosystem modeller. He is best known for his pioneering work in the development of open ocean
plankton ecosystem models.[4][5]
After his PhD, he joined the
National Institute of Oceanography (NIO) in
Wormley, and remained with this organisation and its successor institutes[7] throughout his career. Here, together with NIO colleagues, Fasham developed one of the first shipborne computer systems.[8][9] He also applied his experience in statistics to the
biogeography of
plankton, a field that was then largely descriptive.[10][11] This led to a series of papers on plankton distribution,[12][13] as well as the development of an underway
fluorimeter that could be used to measure
phytoplanktonchlorophyll on
hydrographic surveys.[14]
Fasham also played an important role in the international
Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS) that ran from 1987 to 2003, and he served on both the National and International Committees before ultimately taking the role as chair of the International Committee from 1998 to 2000.
^Fasham, M. J. R. (1970). "The use of a shipborne computer for navigation". Proceedings of the Conference on Electronic Engineering in Ocean Technology: 259–270.
^Fasham, M. J. R. (1971). "Sea-going computers". In M. R. Clarke; P. J. Herring (eds.). Deep Oceans. Arthur Barker Ltd, London. pp. 58–60.
^Angel, M. V.; Fasham, M. J. R. (1973). "SOND cruise 1965 – factor and cluster analyses of plankton results, a general summary". Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. 53 (1): 185–231.
Bibcode:
1973JMBUK..53..185A.
doi:
10.1017/s002531540005671x.
S2CID83579761.
^Fasham, M. J. R.; Foxton, P. (1979). "Zonal distribution of pelagic Decapoda (Crustacea) in the eastern North Atlantic and its relation to the physical oceanography". J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol. 37 (3): 225–253.
doi:
10.1016/0022-0981(79)90062-5.
^Fasham, M. J. R.; Angel, M. V.; Roe, H. S. J. (1974). "An investigation of spatial pattern of zooplankton using Longhurst-Hardy Plankton Recorder". J. Exp. Mar. Biol. Ecol. 16 (2): 93–112.
doi:
10.1016/0022-0981(74)90013-6.
^Fasham, M. J. R. (1978). "The statistical and mathematical analysis of plankton patchiness". Oceanogr. Mar. Biol. Annu. Rev. 16: 43–79.
^Fasham, M. J. R.; Pugh, P. R.; Griffiths, D.; Wheaton, J. E. G. (1983). "A submersible fluorometer for the detection of chlorophyll". Radio and Electronic Engineer. 53: 21–24.
doi:
10.1049/ree.1983.0005.
^Fasham, M. J. R. (1981). "Analytic food web models". In T. Platt; K.H. Mann; R.E. Ulanowicz (eds.). Mathematical models in biological oceanography. UNESCO Press, Paris, France. pp. 54–65.
ISBN978-92-3-101922-7.
^Fasham, M. J. R. (ed.) (1984). "Flows of energy and materials in marine ecosystems: theory and practice". Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. NATO conference series. IV, Marine sciences. 13: 275.
doi:
10.1017/S0025315400061002. {{
cite journal}}: |author= has generic name (
help)
^Fasham, M. J. R.; Flynn, K. J.; et al. (2006). "Development of a robust marine ecosystem model to predict the role of iron in biogeochemical cycles: A comparison of results for iron-replete and iron-limited areas, and the SOIREE iron-enrichment experiment". Deep-Sea Research Part I. 53 (2): 333–366.
Bibcode:
2006DSRI...53..333F.
doi:
10.1016/j.dsr.2005.09.011.