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Local stratification control of marine productivity in the subtropical North Pacific

Publication ,  Journal Article
Dave, AC; Lozier, MS
Published in: Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans
January 1, 2010

Strengthened stratification of the upper ocean due to global warming is generally expected to inhibit marine primary productivity in the subtropics, based on the supposition that increased water column stability will decrease vertical mixing and consequently the entrainment of deep nutrients into the euphotic zone. A recent analysis of observational data from the subtropical North Atlantic, however, demonstrates that productivity in this region is not correlated with stratification on interannual time scales over the modern observational record, but is instead impacted by other dynamics that affect vertical mixing and nutrient supply. Herein, we examine data from the Hawaiian Ocean Time series program's Station ALOHA (A Long-Term Oligotrophic Habitat Assessment) in the subtropical North Pacific. We find that stratification and productivity are not strongly correlated at this location over the observational record. In contrast to the North Atlantic, the weakness of correlation observed at ALOHA may reflect the strongly stratified ecosystem of the eastern subtropical North Pacific and a lack of sufficiently strong interannual forcing in this region. Although basin-wide climate processes (namely El Nio-Southern Oscillation and Pacific Decadel Oscillation) have previously been suggested to impact local stratification and vertical nutrient supply at ALOHA, we find no evidence of a strong or consistent linkage. Comparing local ecosystem variability to the recently identified North Pacific Gyre Oscillation, however, we observe a correlation with local subsurface productivity and salinity. The correlations have similar structure in both space (i.e., depth) and time and are possibly linked to dynamics associated with the formation and advection of water masses in the central gyre. © 2010 by the American Geophysical Union.

Duke Scholars

Published In

Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans

DOI

EISSN

2169-9291

Publication Date

January 1, 2010

Volume

115

Issue

12

Related Subject Headings

  • 3709 Physical geography and environmental geoscience
  • 3708 Oceanography
  • 3706 Geophysics
  • 0406 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience
  • 0405 Oceanography
  • 0404 Geophysics
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
NLM
Dave, A. C., & Lozier, M. S. (2010). Local stratification control of marine productivity in the subtropical North Pacific. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 115(12). https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JC006507
Dave, A. C., and M. S. Lozier. “Local stratification control of marine productivity in the subtropical North Pacific.” Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans 115, no. 12 (January 1, 2010). https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JC006507.
Dave AC, Lozier MS. Local stratification control of marine productivity in the subtropical North Pacific. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans. 2010 Jan 1;115(12).
Dave, A. C., and M. S. Lozier. “Local stratification control of marine productivity in the subtropical North Pacific.” Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, vol. 115, no. 12, Jan. 2010. Scopus, doi:10.1029/2010JC006507.
Dave AC, Lozier MS. Local stratification control of marine productivity in the subtropical North Pacific. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans. 2010 Jan 1;115(12).

Published In

Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans

DOI

EISSN

2169-9291

Publication Date

January 1, 2010

Volume

115

Issue

12

Related Subject Headings

  • 3709 Physical geography and environmental geoscience
  • 3708 Oceanography
  • 3706 Geophysics
  • 0406 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience
  • 0405 Oceanography
  • 0404 Geophysics