Competition between baroclinic instability and Ekman transport under varying buoyancy forcings in upwelling systems: An idealized analog to the Southern Ocean.

Coastal upwelling rates are classically determined by the intensity of the upper-ocean offshore Ekman transport. But (sub-)mesoscale turbulence modulates offshore transport, hence the net upwelling rate. Eddy effects generally oppose the Ekman circulation, resulting in so-called “eddy cancellation”, a process well studied in the Southern Ocean. Here we investigate how air-sea heat/buoyancy fluxes modulate eddy cancellation in an idealized upwelling model. We run CROCO simulations with constant winds but varying heat fluxes with and without submesoscale-rich turbulence. Eddy cancellation is consistently evaluated with three different methods that all account for the quasi-isopycnal nature of ocean circulation away from the surface. For zero heat fluxes the release of available potential energy by baroclinic instabilities is strongest and leads, near the coast, to nearly full cancellation of the Ekman cross-shore circulation by eddy effects, i.e., zero net mean upwelling flow. With increasing heat fluxes eddy cancellation is reduced and the transverse flow progressively approaches the classical Ekman circulation. Sensitivity of the eddy circulation to synoptic changes in air-sea heat fluxes is felt down to 125 m depth despite short experiments of tens of days. Mesoscale dynamics dominate the cancellation effect in our simulations which might also hold for the real ocean as the relevant processes act below the surface boundary layer. Although the idealized setting overemphasis the role of eddies and thus studies with more realistic settings should follow, our findings have important implications for the overall understanding of upwelling system dynamics.

Seasonal cycling of zinc and cobalt in the south-eastern Atlantic along the GEOTRACES GA10 section

We report the distributions and stoichiometry of dissolved zinc (dZn) and cobalt (dCo) in sub-tropical and sub-Antarctic waters of the south-eastern Atlantic Ocean during austral spring 2010 and summer 2011/2012. In sub-tropical surface waters, mixed-layer dZn and dCo concentrations during early spring were 1.60 ± 2.58 nM and 30 ± 11 pM, respectively, compared with summer values of 0.14 ± 0.08 nM and 24 ± 6 pM. The elevated spring dZn concentrations resulted from an apparent offshore transport of elevated dZn at depths between 20–55 m, derived from the Agulhas Bank. In contrast, open-ocean sub-Antarctic surface waters displayed largely consistent inter-seasonal mixed-layer dZn and dCo concentrations of 0.10 ± 0.07 nM and 11 ± 5 pM, respectively. Trace metal stoichiometry, calculated from concentration inventories, suggests a greater overall removal for dZn relative to dCo in the upper water column of the south-eastern Atlantic, with inter-seasonally decreasing dZn / dCo inventory ratios of 19–5 and 13–7 mol mol−1 for sub-tropical surface water and sub-Antarctic surface water, respectively. In this paper, we investigate how the seasonal influences of external input and phytoplankton succession may relate to the distribution of dZn and dCo and variation in dZn / dCo stoichiometry across these two distinct ecological regimes in the south-eastern Atlantic.

The fate of upwelled nitrate off Peru shaped by submesoscale filaments and fronts

Filaments and fronts play a crucial role for a net offshore and downward nutrient transport in Eastern Boundary Upwelling Systems (EBUSs) and thereby reduce regional primary production. Most studies on this topic are based on either observations or model simulations, but only seldom are both approaches are combined quantitatively to assess the importance of filaments for primary production and nutrient transport. Here we combine targeted interdisciplinary shipboard observations of a cold filament off Peru with submesoscale-permitting (1/45∘) coupled physical (Coastal and Regional Ocean Community model, CROCO) and biogeochemical (Pelagic Interaction Scheme for Carbon and Ecosystem Studies, PISCES) model simulations to (i) evaluate the model simulations in detail, including the timescales of biogeochemical modification of the newly upwelled water, and (ii) quantify the net effect of submesoscale fronts and filaments on primary production in the Peruvian upwelling system. The observed filament contains relatively cold, fresh, and nutrient-rich waters originating in the coastal upwelling. Enhanced nitrate concentrations and offshore velocities of up to 0.5 m s−1 within the filament suggest an offshore transport of nutrients. Surface chlorophyll in the filament is a factor of 4 lower than at the upwelling front, while surface primary production is a factor of 2 higher. The simulation exhibits filaments that are similar in horizontal and vertical scale compared to the observed filament. Nitrate concentrations and primary production within filaments in the model are comparable to observations as well, justifying further analysis of nitrate uptake and subduction using the model. Virtual Lagrangian floats were released in the subsurface waters along the shelf and biogeochemical variables tracked along the trajectories of floats upwelled near the coast. In the submesoscale-permitting (1/45∘) simulation, 43 % of upwelled floats and 40 % of upwelled nitrate are subducted within 20 d after upwelling, which corresponds to an increase in nitrate subduction compared to a mesoscale-resolving (1/9∘) simulation by 14 %. Taking model biases into account, we give a best estimate for subduction of upwelled nitrate off Peru between 30 %– 40 %. Our results suggest that submesoscale processes further reduce primary production by amplifying the downward and offshore export of nutrients found in previous mesoscale studies, which are thus likely to underestimate the reduction in primary production due to eddy fluxes. Moreover, this downward and offshore transport could also enhance the export of fresh organic matter below the euphotic zone and thereby potentially stimulate microbial activity in regions of the upper offshore oxygen minimum zone.

Using an oceanographic model to investigate the mystery of the missing puerulus

Dynamics of ocean boundary currents and associated shelf processes can influence onshore/offshore transport of water, critically impacting marine organisms that release long-lived pelagic larvae into the water column. The western rock lobster, Panulirus cygnus, endemic to Western Australia, is the basis of Australia's most valuable wild-caught commercial fishery. After hatching, western rock lobster larvae (phyllosoma) spend up to 11 months in offshore waters before ocean currents and their ability to swim, transport them back to the coast. The abundance of western rock lobster puerulus (settlement phase post phyllosoma) has historically been observed to be positively correlated with the strength of the Leeuwin Current, and an index of puerulus numbers is used by fisheries managers as a predictor of subsequent lobster abundance 3–4 years later. In 2008 and 2009 the Leeuwin Current was strong, yet a settlement failure occurred throughout the fishery prompting management changes and a rethinking of environmental factors associated with their settlement. Thus, understanding factors that may have been responsible for the settlement failure is important for fisheries management. Oceanographic parameters likely to influence puerulus settlement were derived for a 17 year period to investigate correlations. Analysis indicated that puerulus settlement at adjacent monitoring sites have similar oceanographic forcing with kinetic energy in the offshore and the strength of the Leeuwin Current being key factors. Settlement failure years were synonymous with “hiatus” conditions in the south-east Indian Ocean, and periods of sustained cooler water present offshore. Post 2009, there has been an unusual but consistent increase in the Leeuwin Current during the early summer months with a matching decrease in the Capes Current, that may explain an observed settlement timing mismatch compared to historical data. Our study has revealed that a culmination of these conditions likely led to the recruitment failure and subsequent changes in puerulus settlement patterns.

Drivers and impact of the seasonal variability of the organic carbon offshore transport in the Canary upwelling system

The Canary upwelling system (CanUS) is a productive coastal region characterized by strong seasonality and an intense offshore transport of organic carbon (Corg) to the adjacent oligotrophic offshore waters. There, the respiration of this Corg substantially modifies net community production (NCP). While this transport and the resulting coupling of the biogeochemistry between the coastal and open ocean has been well studied in the annual mean, the temporal variability, and especially its seasonality, has not yet been investigated. Here, we determine the seasonal variability of the offshore transport of Corg, its mesoscale component, latitudinal differences, and the underlying physical and biological drivers. To this end, we employ the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) coupled to a nutrient–phytoplankton–zooplankton–detritus (NPZD) ecosystem model. Our results reveal the importance of the mesoscale fluxes and of the upwelling processes (coastal upwelling and Ekman pumping) in modulating the seasonal variation of the offshore Corg transport. We find that the region surrounding Cape Blanc (21∘ N) hosts the most intense Corg offshore flux in every season, linked to the persistent, and far reaching Cape Blanc filament and its interaction with the Cape Verde Front. Coastal upwelling filaments dominate the seasonality of the total offshore flux up to 100 km from the coast, contributing in every season at least 80 % to the total flux. The seasonality of the upwelling modulates the offshore Corg seasonality hundreds of kilometers from the CanUS coast via lateral redistribution of nearshore production. North of 24.5∘ N, the sharp summer–fall peak of coastal upwelling results in an export of more than 30 % of the coastal Corg at 100 km offshore due to a combination of intensified nearshore production and offshore fluxes. To the south, the less pronounced upwelling seasonality regulates an overall larger but farther-reaching and less seasonally varying lateral flux, which exports between 60 % and 90 % of the coastal production more than 100 km offshore. Overall, we show that the temporal variability of nearshore processes modulates the variability of Corg and NCP hundreds of kilometers offshore from the CanUS coast via the offshore transport of the nearshore production.

A Nearshore Oceanic Front Induced By Wave Streaming

Coastal fronts impact cross-shelf exchange of materials, such as plankton and nutrients, which are important to the ecosystems in continental shelves. Here using numerical simulation we demonstrate a nearshore front induced by wave streaming. Wave streaming is a bottom Eulerian current along the surface wave direction, and it is caused by the wave bottom dissipation. Wave streaming drives a Lagrangian overturning circulation in the inner shelf and pumps up deep and cold water into the overturning circulation. The water inside the overturning circulation is quickly mixed and cooled because of the wave streaming-enhanced viscosity. However, the offshore water outside the overturning circulation remains stratified and warmer. Hence, a front develops between the water inside and outside the overturning circulation. The front is unstable and generates submesoscale shelf eddies, which lead the offshore transport across the front. This study presents a new mechanism for coastal frontogenesis.

A Lagrangian study of the contribution of the Canary coastal upwelling to the nitrogen budget of the open North Atlantic

The Canary Current System (CanCS) is a major eastern boundary upwelling system (EBUS), known for its high nearshore productivity and for sustaining a large fishery. It is also an important but not well quantified source of nitrogen to the adjacent oligotrophic subtropical gyre of the North Atlantic. Here, we use a Lagrangian modeling approach to quantify this offshore transport and investigate its timescales, reach and contribution to the fueling of productivity in the offshore regions. In our Lagrangian model, we release nearly 10 million particles off the northwestern African coast and then track all those that enter the nearshore region and upwell along the coast between 14 and 35∘ N. We then follow them as they are transported offshore, also tracking the biogeochemical transformations, permitting us to construct biogeochemical budgets along the offshore moving particles. The three-dimensional velocity field as well as the biogeochemical tracers and fluxes are taken from an eddy-resolving configuration of the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS). Our Lagrangian model analysis reveals a very intense offshore transport of nitrogen, with about 20 %–40 % in the form of organic nitrogen. The transport varies greatly along the coast. Even though the central CanCS (21–28∘ N) transports the largest amount of water offshore, its offshore transport of nitrogen is somewhat smaller than that in the southern CanCS (14–21∘ N), primarily because of the higher nitrogen content of the upwelling waters there. Around one-third of the total offshore transport of water occurs around major capes along the CanCS. The persistent filaments associated with these capes are responsible for an up to 4-fold enhancement of the offshore transport of water and nitrogen in the first 400 km. Much of this water and nitrogen stems from upwelling at quite some distance from the capes, confirming the capes' role in collecting water from along the coast. North of Cape Blanc and within the first 500 km from the coast, water recirculation is a dominant feature of offshore transport. This process, likely associated with mesoscale eddies, tends to reduce the efficiency of offshore transport. The Canary upwelling is modeled to supply around 44 and 7 mmol N m−2 yr−1 to the North Atlantic Tropical Gyral (NATR) and the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyral East (NASE) Longhurst provinces, respectively. In the NATR, this represents nearly half (53 ± 26 %) of the estimated total new production, while in the NASE, this fraction is small (4 ± 2 %). Our results highlight the importance of the CanCS upwelling as a key source of nitrogen to the open North Atlantic and stress the need for improving the representation of EBUS in global coarse-resolution models.

Drivers and impact of the seasonal variability of the organic carbon offshore transport in the Canary Upwelling System

The Canary Upwelling System (CanUS) is a productive coastal region characterized by strong seasonality and an intense offshore transport of organic carbon (Corg) to the adjacent oligotrophic offshore waters. There, the respiration of this Corg substantially modifies net community production (NCP). While this transport and the resulting coupling of the biogeochemistry between the coastal and open ocean has been well studied in the annual mean, the temporal variability, and especially its seasonality has not yet been investigated. Here, we fill this gap, and determine the seasonal variability of the offshore transport of Corg, its mesoscale component, latitudinal differences, and the underlying physical and biological drivers. To this end, we employ the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) coupled to a nutrient, phytoplankton, zooplankton, and detritus (NPZD) ecosystem model. Our results reveal the importance of the mesoscale fluxes and of the upwelling processes (coastal upwelling and Ekman pumping) in modulating the seasonal variation of the offshore Corg transport. We find that the region surrounding Cape Blanc (21° N) hosts the most intense Corg offshore flux in every season, linked to the persistent, and far reaching Cape Blanc filament. Coastal upwelling filaments dominate the seasonality of the total offshore flux up to 100 km from the coast, contributing in every season season at least 80 % to the total flux. The seasonality of the upwelling modulates the offshore Corg seasonality hundreds of km from the CanUS coast via lateral redistribution of nearshore production. North of 24.5° N, the sharp summer-fall peak of coastal upwelling results in an export of more than 30 % of the coastal Corg at the 100 km offshore due to a combination of intensified nearshore production and offshore fluxes. To the south, the less pronounced upwelling seasonality regulates an overall larger, but farther-reaching and less seasonally varying lateral flux, which exports between 60 and 90 % of the coastal production more than 100 km offshore. Overall, we show that the temporal variability of nearshore processes impacts the variability of Corg and NCP hundreds of km offshore from the CanUS coast via the offshore transport of the nearshore production.