scholarly journals Evaluating Southern Ocean biological production in two ocean biogeochemical models on daily to seasonal timescales using satellite chlorophyll and O<sub>2</sub> / Ar observations

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 681-695
Author(s):  
B. F. Jonsson ◽  
S. Doney ◽  
J. Dunne ◽  
M. L. Bender
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Drake Passage ◽  
Ecosystem Dynamics ◽  
Net Community Production ◽  
Biogeochemical Models ◽  
In Situ Observations ◽  
Satellite Chlorophyll ◽  
Community Production

Abstract. We assess the ability of ocean biogeochemical models to represent seasonal structures in biomass and net community production (NCP) in the Southern Ocean. Two models are compared to observations on daily to seasonal timescales in four different sections of the region. We use daily satellite fields of chlorophyll (Chl) as a proxy for biomass and in situ observations of O2 and Ar supersaturation (ΔO2 / Ar) to estimate NCP. ΔO2 / Ar is converted to the flux of biologically generated O2 from sea to air (O2 bioflux). All data are aggregated to a climatological year with a daily resolution. To account for potential regional differences within the Southern Ocean, we conduct separate analyses of sections south of South Africa, around the Drake Passage, south of Australia, and south of New Zealand. We find that the models simulate the upper range of Chl concentrations well, underestimate spring levels significantly, and show differences in skill between early and late parts of the growing season. While there is a great deal of scatter in the bioflux observations in general, the four sectors each have distinct patterns that the models pick up. Neither model exhibits a significant distinction between the Australian and New Zealand sectors and between the Drake Passage and African sectors. South of 60° S, the models fail to predict the observed extent of biological O2 undersaturation. We suggest that this shortcoming may be due either to problems with the ecosystem dynamics or problems with the vertical transport of oxygen.

scholarly journals Evaluating Southern Ocean biological production in two ocean biogeochemical models on daily to seasonal time-scales using satellite surface chlorophyll and O<sub>2</sub>/Ar observations

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 9629-9665
Author(s):  
B. F. Jonsson ◽  
S. Doney ◽  
J. Dunne ◽  
M. L. Bender
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Time Scales ◽  
Drake Passage ◽  
Ecosystem Dynamics ◽  
Model Assessment ◽  
Biological Production ◽  
Carbon Biomass ◽  
Biogeochemical Models ◽  
Satellite Chlorophyll

Abstract. We assess the ability of ocean biogeochemical models to represent seasonal structures in biomass and net community production (NCP) in the Southern Ocean. Two models are compared to observations on daily to seasonal time scales in four different sections of the region. We use daily satellite fields of Chlorophyll (Chl) as a proxy for biomass, and in-situ observations of O2 and Ar supersaturation (ΔO2Ar) to estimate NCP. ΔO2Ar is converted to the flux of biologically generated O2 from sea to air ("O2 bioflux"). All data are aggregated to a climatological year with a daily resolution. To account for potential regional differences within the Southern Ocean, we conduct separate analyses of sections south of South Africa, around the Drake Passage, south of Australia, and south of New Zealand. We find that the models simulate the upper range of Chl concentrations well, underestimate spring levels significantly, and show differences in skill between early and late parts of the growing season. While there is a great deal of scatter in the bioflux observations in general, the four sectors each have distinct patterns that the models pick up. Neither model exhibit a significant distinction between the Australian and New Zealand sectors, and between the Drake Passage and African sectors. South of 60° S, the models fail to predict the observed extent of biological O2 undersaturation. We suggest that this shortcoming may be due either to problems with the ecosystem dynamics or problems with the vertical transport of oxygen. Overall, the bioflux observations are in general agreement with the seasonal structures in satellite chlorophyll, suggesting that this seasonality represent changes in carbon biomass and not Chl : C ratios. This agreement is shared in the models and allows us to interpret the seasonal structure of satellite chlorophyll as qualitatively reflecting the integral of biological production over time for the purposes of model assessment.

scholarly journals Neural network-based estimates of Southern Ocean net community production from in situ O<sub>2</sub> / Ar and satellite observation: a methodological study

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 3279-3297 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.-H. Chang ◽  
N. C. Johnson ◽  
N. Cassar
Keyword(s):  
Neural Network ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Mixed Layer ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Carbon Export ◽  
Net Community Production ◽  
Basin Scale ◽  
Community Production

Abstract. Southern Ocean organic carbon export plays an important role in the global carbon cycle, yet its basin-scale climatology and variability are uncertain due to limited coverage of in situ observations. In this study, a neural network approach based on the self-organizing map (SOM) is adopted to construct weekly gridded (1° × 1°) maps of organic carbon export for the Southern Ocean from 1998 to 2009. The SOM is trained with in situ measurements of O2 / Ar-derived net community production (NCP) that are tightly linked to the carbon export in the mixed layer on timescales of one to two weeks and with six potential NCP predictors: photosynthetically available radiation (PAR), particulate organic carbon (POC), chlorophyll (Chl), sea surface temperature (SST), sea surface height (SSH), and mixed layer depth (MLD). This nonparametric approach is based entirely on the observed statistical relationships between NCP and the predictors and, therefore, is strongly constrained by observations. A thorough cross-validation yields three retained NCP predictors, Chl, PAR, and MLD. Our constructed NCP is further validated by good agreement with previously published, independent in situ derived NCP of weekly or longer temporal resolution through real-time and climatological comparisons at various sampling sites. The resulting November–March NCP climatology reveals a pronounced zonal band of high NCP roughly following the Subtropical Front in the Atlantic, Indian, and western Pacific sectors, and turns southeastward shortly after the dateline. Other regions of elevated NCP include the upwelling zones off Chile and Namibia, the Patagonian Shelf, the Antarctic coast, and areas surrounding the Islands of Kerguelen, South Georgia, and Crozet. This basin-scale NCP climatology closely resembles that of the satellite POC field and observed air–sea CO2 flux. The long-term mean area-integrated NCP south of 50° S from our dataset, 17.9 mmol C m−2 d−1, falls within the range of 8.3 to 24 mmol C m−2 d−1 from other model estimates. A broad agreement is found in the basin-wide NCP climatology among various models but with significant spatial variations, particularly in the Patagonian Shelf. Our approach provides a comprehensive view of the Southern Ocean NCP climatology and a potential opportunity to further investigate interannual and intraseasonal variability.

scholarly journals Neural network-based estimates of Southern Ocean net community production from in-situ O<sub>2</sub> / Ar and satellite observation: a methodological study

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 16923-16972 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.-H. Chang ◽  
N. C. Johnson ◽  
N. Cassar
Keyword(s):  
Neural Network ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Mixed Layer ◽  
Sea Surface ◽  
Carbon Export ◽  
Net Community Production ◽  
Basin Scale ◽  
Community Production

Abstract. Southern Ocean organic carbon export plays an important role in the global carbon cycle, yet its basin-scale climatology and variability are uncertain due to limited coverage of in situ observations. In this study, a neural network approach based on the self-organizing map (SOM) is adopted to construct weekly gridded (1° × 1°) maps of organic carbon export for the Southern Ocean from 1998 to 2009. The SOM is trained with in situ measurements of O2 / Ar-derived net community production (NCP) that are tightly linked to the carbon export in the mixed layer on timescales of 1–2 weeks, and six potential NCP predictors: photosynthetically available radiation (PAR), particulate organic carbon (POC), chlorophyll (Chl), sea surface temperature (SST), sea surface height (SSH), and mixed layer depth (MLD). This non-parametric approach is based entirely on the observed statistical relationships between NCP and the predictors, and therefore is strongly constrained by observations. A thorough cross-validation yields three retained NCP predictors, Chl, PAR, and MLD. Our constructed NCP is further validated by good agreement with previously published independent in situ derived NCP of weekly or longer temporal resolution through real-time and climatological comparisons at various sampling sites. The resulting November–March NCP climatology reveals a pronounced zonal band of high NCP roughly following the subtropical front in the Atlantic, Indian and western Pacific sectors, and turns southeastward shortly after the dateline. Other regions of elevated NCP include the upwelling zones off Chile and Namibia, Patagonian Shelf, Antarctic coast, and areas surrounding the Islands of Kerguelen, South Georgia, and Crozet. This basin-scale NCP climatology closely resembles that of the satellite POC field and observed air-sea CO2 flux. The long-term mean area-integrated NCP south of 50° S from our dataset, 14 mmol C m–2 d–1, falls within the range of 8.3–24 mmol C m–2 d–1 from other model estimates. A broad agreement is found in the basin-wide NCP climatology among various models but with significant spatial variations, particularly in the Patagonian Shelf. Our approach provides a comprehensive view of the Southern Ocean NCP climatology and a potential opportunity to further investigate interannual and intraseasonal variability.

scholarly journals A Modeling Case Study of Mixed-Phase Clouds over the Southern Ocean and Tasmania

2010 ◽  
Vol 138 (3) ◽  
pp. 839-862 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony E. Morrison ◽  
Steven T. Siems ◽  
Michael J. Manton ◽  
Alex Nazarov
Keyword(s):  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Supercooled Liquid ◽  
Mixed Phase ◽  
Weather Research And Forecasting ◽  
Marine Stratocumulus ◽  
Cloud Structure ◽  
In Situ Observations ◽  
Cloud Tops ◽  
Mixed Phase Clouds

Abstract The cloud structure associated with two frontal passages over the Southern Ocean and Tasmania is investigated. The first event, during August 2006, is characterized by large quantities of supercooled liquid water and little ice. The second case, during October 2007, is more mixed phase. The Weather Research and Forecasting model (WRFV2.2.1) is evaluated using remote sensed and in situ observations within the post frontal air mass. The Thompson microphysics module is used to describe in-cloud processes, where ice is initiated using the Cooper parameterization at temperatures lower than −8°C or at ice supersaturations greater than 8%. The evaluated cases are then used to numerically investigate the prevalence of supercooled and mixed-phase clouds over Tasmania and the ocean to the west. The simulations produce marine stratocumulus-like clouds with maximum heights of between 3 and 5 km. These are capped by weak temperature and strong moisture inversions. When the inversion is at temperatures warmer than −10°C, WRF produces widespread supercooled cloud fields with little glaciation. This is consistent with the limited in situ observations. When the inversion is at higher altitudes, allowing cooler cloud tops, glaciated (and to a lesser extent mixed phase) clouds are more common. The simulations are further explored to evaluate any orographic signature within the cloud structure over Tasmania. No consistent signature is found between the two cases.

scholarly journals A perturbed biogeochemistry model ensemble evaluated against in situ and satellite observations

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (21) ◽  
pp. 6685-6711 ◽  
Author(s):  
Prima Anugerahanti ◽  
Shovonlal Roy ◽  
Keith Haines
Keyword(s):  
Peak Height ◽  
Ecosystem Dynamics ◽  
Abyssal Plain ◽  
Biogeochemical Model ◽  
Structural Sensitivity ◽  
Statistical Measures ◽  
Biogeochemical Models ◽  
Nutrient Utilisation ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. The dynamics of biogeochemical models are determined by the mathematical equations used to describe the main biological processes. Earlier studies have shown that small changes in the model formulation may lead to major changes in system dynamics, a property known as structural sensitivity. We assessed the impact of structural sensitivity in a biogeochemical model of intermediate complexity by modelling the chlorophyll and dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) concentrations. The model is run at five different oceanographic stations spanning three different regimes: oligotrophic, coastal, and the abyssal plain, over a 10-year timescale to observe the effect in different regions. A 1-D Model of Ecosystem Dynamics, nutrient Utilisation, Sequestration, and Acidification (MEDUSA) ensemble was used with each ensemble member having a combination of tuned function parameterizations that describe some of the key biogeochemical processes, namely nutrient uptake, zooplankton grazing, and plankton mortalities. The impact is quantified using phytoplankton phenology (initiation, bloom time, peak height, duration, and termination of phytoplankton blooms) and statistical measures such as RMSE (root-mean-squared error), mean, and range for chlorophyll and nutrients. The spread of the ensemble as a measure of uncertainty is assessed against observations using the normalized RMSE ratio (NRR). We found that even small perturbations in model structure can produce large ensemble spreads. The range of 10-year mean surface chlorophyll concentration in the ensemble is between 0.14 and 3.69 mg m−3 at coastal stations, 0.43 and 1.11 mg m−3 on the abyssal plain, and 0.004 and 0.16 mg m−3 at the oligotrophic stations. Changing both phytoplankton and zooplankton mortalities and the grazing functions has the largest impact on chlorophyll concentrations. The in situ measurements of bloom timings, duration, and terminations lie mostly within the ensemble range. The RMSEs between in situ observations and the ensemble mean and median are mostly reduced compared to the default model output. The NRRs for monthly variability suggest that the ensemble spread is generally narrow (NRR 1.21–1.39 for DIN and 1.19–1.39 for chlorophyll profiles, 1.07–1.40 for surface chlorophyll, and 1.01–1.40 for depth-integrated chlorophyll). Among the five stations, the most reliable ensembles are obtained for the oligotrophic station ALOHA (for the surface and integrated chlorophyll and bloom peak height), for coastal station L4 (for inter-annual mean), and for the abyssal plain station PAP (for bloom peak height). Overall our study provides a novel way to generate a realistic ensemble of a biogeochemical model by perturbing the model equations and parameterizations, which will be helpful for the probabilistic predictions.

Estimating net community production in the Southern Ocean based on atmospheric potential oxygen and satellite ocean color data

2012 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. n/a-n/a ◽  
Author(s):  
C. D. Nevison ◽  
R. F. Keeling ◽  
M. Kahru ◽  
M. Manizza ◽  
B. G. Mitchell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Ocean Color ◽  
Net Community Production ◽  
Color Data ◽  
Satellite Ocean Color ◽  
Potential Oxygen ◽  
Community Production

scholarly journals High-resolution view of the spring bloom initiation and net community production in the Subantarctic Southern Ocean using glider data

2015 ◽  
Vol 72 (6) ◽  
pp. 1999-2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy J. Thomalla ◽  
Marie-Fanny Racault ◽  
Sebastiaan Swart ◽  
Pedro M. S. Monteiro
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
High Resolution ◽  
Southern Ocean ◽  
High Growth ◽  
Biomass Accumulation ◽  
Horizontal Resolution ◽  
Early Summer ◽  
Detection Methods ◽  
Net Community Production ◽  
Community Production

Abstract In the Southern Ocean, there is increasing evidence that seasonal to subseasonal temporal scales, and meso- to submesoscales play an important role in understanding the sensitivity of ocean primary productivity to climate change. This drives the need for a high-resolution approach to resolving biogeochemical processes. In this study, 5.5 months of continuous, high-resolution (3 h, 2 km horizontal resolution) glider data from spring to summer in the Atlantic Subantarctic Zone is used to investigate: (i) the mechanisms that drive bloom initiation and high growth rates in the region and (ii) the seasonal evolution of water column production and respiration. Bloom initiation dates were analysed in the context of upper ocean boundary layer physics highlighting sensitivities of different bloom detection methods to different environmental processes. Model results show that in early spring (September to mid-November) increased rates of net community production (NCP) are strongly affected by meso- to submesoscale features. In late spring/early summer (late-November to mid-December) seasonal shoaling of the mixed layer drives a more spatially homogenous bloom with maximum rates of NCP and chlorophyll biomass. A comparison of biomass accumulation rates with a study in the North Atlantic highlights the sensitivity of phytoplankton growth to fine-scale dynamics and emphasizes the need to sample the ocean at high resolution to accurately resolve phytoplankton phenology and improve our ability to estimate the sensitivity of the biological carbon pump to climate change.

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