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Synoptic Mesoscale to Basin Scale Variability in Biological Productivity and Chlorophyll in the Kuroshio Extension Region

The Kuroshio current separates from the Japanese coast to become the eastward flowing Kuroshio Extension (KE) characterized by a strong latitudinal density front, high levels of mesoscale (eddy) energy, and high chlorophyll a (Chl). While satellite measurements of Chl show evidence of the impact of...

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Autores principales: Clayton, Sophie, Palevsky, Hilary I., Thompson, LuAnne, Quay, Paul D.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: John Wiley and Sons Inc. 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9286389/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35865352
http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2021JC017782
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author Clayton, Sophie
Palevsky, Hilary I.
Thompson, LuAnne
Quay, Paul D.
author_facet Clayton, Sophie
Palevsky, Hilary I.
Thompson, LuAnne
Quay, Paul D.
author_sort Clayton, Sophie
collection PubMed
description The Kuroshio current separates from the Japanese coast to become the eastward flowing Kuroshio Extension (KE) characterized by a strong latitudinal density front, high levels of mesoscale (eddy) energy, and high chlorophyll a (Chl). While satellite measurements of Chl show evidence of the impact of mesoscale eddies on the standing stock of phytoplankton, there have been very limited synoptic, spatially resolved in situ estimates of productivity in this region. Here, we present underway measurements of oxygen/argon supersaturation (ΔO(2)/Ar), a tracer of net biological productivity, for the KE made in spring, summer, and early autumn. We find large seasonal differences in the relationships between ΔO(2)/Ar, Chl, and sea level anomaly (SLA), a proxy for local thermocline depth deviations driven by mesoscale eddies derived from satellite observations. We show that the KE is a pronounced hotspot of high ΔO(2)/Ar in spring, but corresponding surface Chl values are low and have no correlation with ΔO(2)/Ar. In summer, there is a hotspot of productivity associated with the Oyashio front, where ΔO(2)/Ar and Chl are strongly positively correlated. In autumn, ΔO(2)/Ar and Chl are consistently low throughout the region and also positively correlated. By combining our analysis of the in situ ΔO(2)/Ar data with complementary Argo, BGC‐Argo, repeat hydrography, and SLA observations, we infer the combination of physical and biological controls that drive the observed distributions of ΔO(2)/Ar and Chl. We find that the KE and Oyashio currents both act to supply nutrients laterally, fueling regions of high productivity in spring and summer, respectively.
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spelling pubmed-92863892022-07-19 Synoptic Mesoscale to Basin Scale Variability in Biological Productivity and Chlorophyll in the Kuroshio Extension Region Clayton, Sophie Palevsky, Hilary I. Thompson, LuAnne Quay, Paul D. J Geophys Res Oceans Research Article The Kuroshio current separates from the Japanese coast to become the eastward flowing Kuroshio Extension (KE) characterized by a strong latitudinal density front, high levels of mesoscale (eddy) energy, and high chlorophyll a (Chl). While satellite measurements of Chl show evidence of the impact of mesoscale eddies on the standing stock of phytoplankton, there have been very limited synoptic, spatially resolved in situ estimates of productivity in this region. Here, we present underway measurements of oxygen/argon supersaturation (ΔO(2)/Ar), a tracer of net biological productivity, for the KE made in spring, summer, and early autumn. We find large seasonal differences in the relationships between ΔO(2)/Ar, Chl, and sea level anomaly (SLA), a proxy for local thermocline depth deviations driven by mesoscale eddies derived from satellite observations. We show that the KE is a pronounced hotspot of high ΔO(2)/Ar in spring, but corresponding surface Chl values are low and have no correlation with ΔO(2)/Ar. In summer, there is a hotspot of productivity associated with the Oyashio front, where ΔO(2)/Ar and Chl are strongly positively correlated. In autumn, ΔO(2)/Ar and Chl are consistently low throughout the region and also positively correlated. By combining our analysis of the in situ ΔO(2)/Ar data with complementary Argo, BGC‐Argo, repeat hydrography, and SLA observations, we infer the combination of physical and biological controls that drive the observed distributions of ΔO(2)/Ar and Chl. We find that the KE and Oyashio currents both act to supply nutrients laterally, fueling regions of high productivity in spring and summer, respectively. John Wiley and Sons Inc. 2021-11-18 2021-11 /pmc/articles/PMC9286389/ /pubmed/35865352 http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2021JC017782 Text en © 2021 The Authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/This is an open access article under the terms of the http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.
spellingShingle Research Article
Clayton, Sophie
Palevsky, Hilary I.
Thompson, LuAnne
Quay, Paul D.
Synoptic Mesoscale to Basin Scale Variability in Biological Productivity and Chlorophyll in the Kuroshio Extension Region
title Synoptic Mesoscale to Basin Scale Variability in Biological Productivity and Chlorophyll in the Kuroshio Extension Region
title_full Synoptic Mesoscale to Basin Scale Variability in Biological Productivity and Chlorophyll in the Kuroshio Extension Region
title_fullStr Synoptic Mesoscale to Basin Scale Variability in Biological Productivity and Chlorophyll in the Kuroshio Extension Region
title_full_unstemmed Synoptic Mesoscale to Basin Scale Variability in Biological Productivity and Chlorophyll in the Kuroshio Extension Region
title_short Synoptic Mesoscale to Basin Scale Variability in Biological Productivity and Chlorophyll in the Kuroshio Extension Region
title_sort synoptic mesoscale to basin scale variability in biological productivity and chlorophyll in the kuroshio extension region
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9286389/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35865352
http://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2021JC017782
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