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AGU: Geophysical Research Letters

 

Index Terms

  • Oceanography: Biological and Chemical: Biogeochemical cycles, processes, and modeling
  • Oceanography: Physical: Eddies and mesoscale processes
  • Oceanography: General: Coastal processes
  • Oceanography: General: Physical and biogeochemical interactions
  • Oceanography: Biological and Chemical: Ecosystems, structure, dynamics, and modeling

Abstract

GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS, VOL. 32, L11612, 4 PP., 2005
doi:10.1029/2005GL022660

Decoupling marine export production from new production

Gian-Kasper Plattner

Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, Los Angeles, USA

Nicolas Gruber

Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, Los Angeles, USA

Hartmut Frenzel

Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, Los Angeles, USA

James C. McWilliams

Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, University of California, Los Angeles, USA

We investigate the relationship between annually integrated new and export production for the central Californian marine upwelling system using an eddy-resolving coupled physical-ecosystem-biogeochemical model. We find that when averaged over the annual cycle lateral transport leads to a substantial spatial decoupling of export from new production, with a length-scale of decoupling on the order of 300 km. The decoupling is largely caused by mean horizontal fluxes induced by persistent meso- and submesoscale circulation structures and to a lesser degree by the mean lateral offshore transport induced by Ekman transport. This indicates that the concept of numerically equal new and export production has to be used with great care, particularly in dynamic oceanic environments.

Received 7 February 2005; accepted 18 May 2005; published 14 June 2005.

Citation: Plattner, G.-K., N. Gruber, H. Frenzel, and J. C. McWilliams (2005), Decoupling marine export production from new production, Geophys. Res. Lett., 32, L11612, doi:10.1029/2005GL022660.

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