Experimental facilities

The experimental facilities at The Sven Lovén Centre for Marine Sciences are among the best in Europe and provide opportunities for virtually all kinds of marine studies close to in situ conditions. Control of temperature, salt content, sedimentation and nutritional conditions is easy to carry out and maintain. Several different test facilities indoors and outdoors ("ecotrons"), together with a comprehensive number of different biotopes closely linked to the research facilities, provide excellent opportunities for high quality research. At the Centre there are also facilities for developing and maintaining cell cultures, which serve as a tool in the study of gene function, ecotoxicology, development, physiology, virology etc.

Sea water containing at least 32 parts per thousand of salt (in water from the surface or the bottom) is available in all laboratories. This is a through-flowing system with a maximum capacity of 25 dm³/s. The water temperature can be regulated to between 0° and 30° C all year round.

Sea water system

The marine ecotron gives access to a mesocosmic system outdoors. Experiment chambers can be protected from precipitation, and adapted for different lighting conditions. The special equipment includes:

• Free flowing filtered sea bed water (from 30 m down)

• Free flowing unfiltered surface water

• 12 large (5.7 x 1.2 m) mesocosmic systems with adjustable depth and location for separate aquaria

Culture systems for microalgae (including flow reactors), protozoa and for marine invertebrate larvae.

The facilities also include experimentation halls, where experiments can be carried out using large tanks (1 m²).
There are also several temperature controlled laboratories here, with running sea water.