Collaborative Research: Seasonal Evolution of Chemical and Biological Variability in the Ross Sea

摘要本奖项由2009年美国复苏与再投资法案（公法111-5）资助。罗斯海是南大洋内的一个高产区，但它在物理（温度、冰浓度、盐度、风和洋流速度）和生物地球化学（叶绿素、生产力、微量营养素、更高营养水平的存量、气体等）条件上都经历了巨大的变化。了解海洋物理强迫的时空变化对了解罗斯海的生态功能至关重要。有许多关于罗斯海物理海洋学的模式描述了观测到的环流。不幸的是，缺乏适当时间尺度（每日、每月、季节和年际）的数据来完全评估这些模型。拟议的研究是一个示范项目，利用新开发的滑翔机技术，在整个生长季节对该地区进行连续采样，收集温度、盐度、荧光、氧气和光传输数据。这些实地数据将用于协助评估基于rom的涡流解析耦合循环-生物模型，并与卫星海洋颜色信息一起被纳入生态系统模型。数据同化技术将减少该地区环流和食物网模式的不确定性。这项工作的智力价值来自于使用新技术（比船舶研究成本效益高得多）的实地调查与最先进的生物物理模型和先进的数据同化技术的结合。这项研究将为南极大陆架复杂的海洋学现象提供新的见解，并且是继续研究南罗斯海的新方法。拟议研究的更广泛影响包括培训研究生和本科生，并与几个正在进行的南大洋科学研究外展项目建立伙伴关系。至少有两名研究生将得到这项研究的支持，它将成为弗吉尼亚州各种推广项目的重要组成部分，包括高中海洋科学日、男女童子军教育和中学课程改进。调查人员还将创建一个网站，促进滑翔机收集的数据立即发布，并寻求与各级学校（初中、高中和大学）建立联系，以便有可能将数据纳入课堂活动

AbstractThis award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).The Ross Sea is a highly productive area within the Southern Ocean, but it experiences substantial variability in both physical (temperature, ice concentrations, salinity, winds, and current velocities) and biogeochemical (chlorophyll, productivity, micronutrients, higher trophic level standing stocks, gases, etc.) conditions. Understanding the temporal and spatial oceanographic variations in physical forcing is essential to understanding the ecological functioning within the Ross Sea. There are a number of models of the physical oceanography of the Ross Sea that characterize the observed circulation. Unfortunately, data on the appropriate time scales (daily, monthly, seasonal, and interannual) to completely evaluate those models are lacking. The proposed research is a demonstration project to characterize the physical and biological oceanography of the southern Ross Sea using newly developed Glider technology to sample the region continuously through the growing season, to collect temperature, salinity, fluorescence, oxygen and optical transmission data. These field data will be used to assist in evaluation of an eddy-resolving ROMS-based coupled circulation-biological model, and, along with satellite ocean color information, will be assimilated into an ecosystem model. Data assimilation techniques will reduce the model uncertainties of the circulation and food webs of the region. The intellectual merit of this effort arises from the combination of field-based investigations using a novel technology (one that is far more cost-effective than ship-based studies) with state-of-the-art biological-physical models and advanced data assimilation techniques. The research will provide new insights into the complex oceanographic phenomena of the Antarctic continental shelves and is a novel method of continuing the studies of the southern Ross Sea. Broader impacts of the proposed research include training of graduate and undergraduate students and partnership with several ongoing outreach programs dealing with scientific research in the Southern Ocean. At least 2 graduate students will be supported by this research, and it will be a critical component of a variety of outreach programs in Virginia, including a High School Marine Science Day, Boy and Girl Scout education, and middle school curriculum improvement. The investigators also will create a web site to foster immediate release of the data collected by the glider, and seek a linkage with schools at various levels (middle, high school and Universities) that potentially could incorporate the data into classroom activities