Imagine a big plastic bag encasing 50,000 liters of seawater and microorganisms. A two weeks experiment to understand the effect of increased CO₂ on seawater pH. It is the Stareso Mesocosm Experiment.

From the Stareso Mesocosm Experiment  blog:

Stareso Mesocosm Experiment is  taking place from June 4th to July 22nd at the Stareso Station. The station is located near Calvi (North West of Corsica) in a wild area.
During this period nine mesocosms will be deployed just in front of the station. A mesocosm is like a strong plastic bag which will be filled with the surrounding water and closed at the bottom, encasing 50,000 liters of seawater and all the microorganisms.
When all the bags (mesocosms) will be closed, the Ocean Acidification effect will be simulated and an increase in Carbon Dioxide level will be achieved in six mesocosms and the three last will be the Controls. CO2 concentrations from present values (~385 ppm) to values expected for the middle of the next century (1000 – 1250 ppm) will be reached by adding seawater saturated in CO₂. The establishment of the mesocosms will take two weeks and will be done by the LOV team.
For the following 4 weeks, scientists from many disciplines will take samples. For this experiment, scientist from 8 institutes and 6 countries will be present.
The Stareso Mesocosm Experiment is an initiative within the MedSeA project.

Visit also the MedSea project blog.

Photo by MedSea Stareso 2012 blog.