From physiology to the sea
Educated at Harvard, where he also taught, Redfield studied physiological effects of radiation and respiratory pigments in marine invertebrates. He joined WHOI’s early research group in 1930, investigating organisms in their ocean environment.
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Organisms and nutrient elements
He recognised a relationship between proportions of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in marine plankton and their distribution in the ocean. The question connected biological production and decomposition with seawater nutrients, becoming an important strand of marine biogeochemistry.
Institutional work and tides
During the Second World War he served as WHOI’s associate director and organised research including marine fouling of ships. After retirement, he continued studying tides along New England and New York, including effects of bottom topography and narrow channels on tidal currents.