US-GLOBEC: NWA/Georges Bank - Marine Ecosystem Responses to Climate-Associated Remote Forcing from the Labrador Sea

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During the past decade, the US GLOBEC Northwest Atlantic/Georges Bank Program has made significant advances in the understanding of the linkages between climate and marine ecosystems in the Northwest Atlantic. This research has shown that physical circulation patterns are responsive to phase changes in the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and that physical and biological responses to NAO forcing in the Scotian Shelf (SS), Gulf of Maine (GOM) and Georges Bank (GB) ecosystems exhibit some degree of predictability. This project will assess the role of remote upstream forcing from the Labrador Sea on ecosystem processes throughout the Northwest Atlantic. Previous studies provided evidence for the hypothesis that remote forcing from the Labrador Sea, as mediated by the Coupled Slope Water System (CSWS), impacts ecosystem processes in the SS/GOM/GB region. This result will expand the scope of this earlier research to examine the following hypotheses: (1). Remote forcing of ecosystem processes in the SS/GOM/GB region is mediated by the CSWS and by enhanced transport of lower salinity shelf waters derived from upstream sources, including the Labrador Sea.(2) Remote forcing from the Labrador Sea impacts ecosystem processes in the SS/GOM/GB region and in the Middle Atlantic Bight (MAB). These hypotheses will be explored via retrospective analyses of climate, remote-sensing, physical oceanographic, biological oceanographic, and fisheries time-series data. A working group composed of climate scientists, oceanographers, and fisheries scientists from the region will work with the research team to steer the research agenda and assist in the interpretation of results. Assessing the regional impacts of climate variability and change is one of the greatest scientific challenges of the 21st century. This project aims to develop a predictive understanding of climate impacts on marine ecosystems in the Northwest Atlantic thus enabling operational input to the managers of living marine resources. Education is integrated into research in this study by training graduate students.