[1] Penetration of solar radiation in the ocean is determined by the attenuation coefficient (Kd( )). Following radiative transfer theory, Kd is a function of angular distribution of incident light and water’s absorption and backscattering coefficients. Because these optical products are now generated routinely from satellite measurements, it is logical to evolve the empirical Kd to a semianaly...

The coastal region of central Chile (36 S) is one of the most productive coastal systems, characterized by a marked seasonality in the upwelling regime, that brings subsurface waters rich in nutrient and poor in oxygen (ESSW) into the euphotic zone. This oceanographic condition depends basically on the equatorward wind strength and is modified on different time scales, with the El Niño-Southern...

The seasonal variability of phytoplankton in the Equatorial Atlantic was analysed using Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS)-derived chlorophyll a (Chl a) concentration data from 1998 to 2001, together with in situ Chl a and primary production data obtained during seven cruises carried out between 1995 and 2000. Monthly averaged SeaWiFS Chl a distributions were in agreement with prev...

We deployed autonomous particle-sensing SOLOPC floats more than eight times during five cruises, amassing almost 400 profiles of particle size (d490 mm) and abundance between the ocean surface and 100 m. The profiles consistently had subsurface maxima in particle volume. The median (by volume) equivalent spherical diameter for the particle distribution was 0.4–0.8 mm and increased with depth in...

Phosphorus (P) regeneration and transformation in the oceanic water column and in marine sediments depends on the chemical nature of the sinking particulate P pool. For the first time, we have characterized the molecular composition of this pool, in various oceanic settings and water depths, using P nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Both inorganic P (orthophosphate, pyrophosphate, ...

Oceanographic research often involves taking high resolution underwater images which can be analyzed in many ways including counting specific species such as scallops, identifying the spread of invasive species like didendum, and determining the effects of environment changes on ecosystems. In order for large scale deployment of imaging systems to be feasible, automatic techniques are required ...

The feasibility of reducing nutrient pollution impact by redirecting the effluent to depths below euphotic zone was investigated for deep estuarine Puget Sound region Salish Sea in Pacific Northwest America. hypothesis tested that thickness outflow layer estuaries may be greater than depth, allowing a fraction nutrients exported out passively through layers immediately below. depth varies from ...

The vertical separation of organic matter formation from respiration can lead to net carbon sequestration within the ocean’s interior, making the biological pump an important component of the global carbon cycle. Understanding the response of the biological pump to the changing environment is a prerequisite to predicting future atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations. Will the biological pump...

The spring bloom in seasonally stratiWed seas is often characterized by a rapid increase in photosynthetic biomass. To clarify how the combined eVects of nutrient and light availability inXuence phytoplankton composition in the oligotrophic Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea, phytoplankton growth and acclimation responses to various nutrient and light regimes were recorded in three independent bioassays an...