Investigating the northern Adriatic Sea ecosystem state with a very high resolution model.

Abstract:

The Northern Adriatic sea interannually varyng biogeochemical dynamics has been simulated with the coupled BFM (Biogeochemical flux model) and NEMO (Nucleus for European Modelling of the Ocean) system at very high resolution and under high frequency forcing. Simulations allowed to estimate the role of mesoscale dynamics in modulating the structure of the lower trophic level ecosystem. Particular emphasis is also put on the analysis of the role of the shelf dense water formation on the temporal and spatial dynamics of the biogeochemical processes. Results are synthesized in term of relevant ecosystem proprieties underlying the ecosystem state, and are validated against corresponding remote observations. This is a contribution of the EU-FP7 Project “PERSEUS” (Policy oriented environmental research in the Southern European Seas).