The impact of resolving mesoscale eddies on the biological pump and the associated planktonic community structure in an earth system model.

Cheryl S Harrison, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, School of Earth, Environmental and Marine Science, Port Isabel, TX, United States, Matthew C Long, National Center for Atm Res, Boulder, CO, United States and Peter Gaube, Applied Physics Laboratory, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
Abstract:
We report on preliminary results characterizing the impact of mesoscale eddies on export production. We compare integrations of the global Community Earth System Model (CESM) Biogeochemical Elemental Cycling (BEC) model at 1º and 1/10º, with a focus on changes in the biological pump attributable to enhanced resolution. Furthermore, we track eddies in the high resolution model and examine the time-evolution of ecosystem processes in eddy-centric coordinates. Particular attention is given to quantifying the role of planktonic community structure and succession, and how these processes vary seasonally, regionally, and with respect to eddy lifetimes. We also make explicit distinctions between dynamics within the interior of eddies versus those operating at the edges. Our results provide insight into mechanisms controlling export production at scales directly relevant to interpreting in situ observations.
Back to: How Do the Carbon Pumps Pump? Mechanisms of the Solubility and Biological Pumps II