2016 OCEAN SCIENCES MEETING
February 21-26, 2016 (New Orleans, LA)
LIST OF OCB-RELEVANT SESSIONS
Updates, Advancements and Projections on the State of the Ocean Carbon
Cycle (SOCC) - How the Ocean is "SOCC"ing it to us!
Session ID#: 9525
Tuesday, February 23, 2016, 206: 8-10 am, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: The global ocean is a major sink of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2),
significantly slowing the accumulation of this important greenhouse gas in the
atmosphere. The physical, biological, and chemical processes and exchanges that occur
in and across ocean and atmosphere represent a major control on ocean CO2
uptake. This session will feature new observations, process studies, and modeling
advancements that further our understanding of the carbon cycle in the ocean and its
connection to ecosystems and climate. Spanning regions of the ocean dominated by
coastal and equatorial upwelling, deep convection, mesoscale eddies, etc., this globally
expansive session will include presentations that highlight the strong connection
between the ocean carbon cycle and the climate, focusing on physical dynamics,
chemistry changes (e.g., ocean acidification), and biological responses and feedbacks.
Conveners: Erica Hudson Ombres(NOAA, OAR Ocean Acidification Program), Kristan
Uhlenbrock (U.S. CLIVAR Project Office, Washington, DC), Heather M Benway (Ocean
Carbon and Biogeochemistry (OCB) Project Office, Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst.),
Kathy Tedesco (NOAA Climate Program Office, Silver Spring, MD)
Understanding and predicting the marine nitrogen cycle: from microbes to the global
ocean
Session ID#: 9477
Description: The oceanic fixed nitrogen (N) inventory exerts a significant influence on
the biosphere by controlling marine productivity and affecting climate relevant gases
such as CO2 and N2O. Despite significant advances in understanding the marine N cycle
over the past decades, there are still large uncertainties in how the N inventory is
regulated by physical processes and by biogeochemical interactions with C, P, Fe, and O 2
and how it is affected by anthropogenic activities. In this session, we invite contributions
on the regulation of the marine N-cycle, including N2 fixation, denitrification,
nitrification, and N2O production. We welcome studies that use diverse biogeochemical
approaches (such as stable and radiogenic isotopes, trace elements, biomarkers, and
modelling) and that cover diverse spatial and temporal scales, including those that focus
on the current, past and future ocean. We hope this session will foster a
multidisciplinary exchange on the drivers of and future changes to the N cycle.
Conveners: Angela Landolfi and Wolfgang Koeve (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean
Research Kiel, Marine Biogeochemical Modeling, Kiel, Germany), Lauren M Zamora
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD)
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Ocean heat and carbon uptake and storage: observations, mechanisms and feedbacks
Session ID: 9279
Thursday, February 25, 2016, 211-213: 8-10 am, 2-5 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Heat and CO2 exchange between the atmosphere and ocean is a major
control on Earth’s climate. Climbing atmospheric CO2 concentrations, along with
associated radiative impacts, perturbs the ocean state and circulation. These physical
changes in the ocean generally feedback positively on atmospheric CO2 levels by
reducing ocean carbon uptake. However, the uptake of heat alters the circulation in
ways that may feedback negatively (i.e. a stabilizing feedback) or positively on
atmospheric warming trends. The sign and strength of these feedbacks depends on the
complex interplay between physical and biogeochemical processes in the ocean and
their interaction with atmospheric dynamics and radiative feedbacks. Recent advances
in observational and modeling capabilities have deepened our understanding of these
relevant processes. However the exact mechanisms governing the magnitude and
regional distribution of heat and carbon uptake and storage remain poorly understood.
This session seeks new and evolving insights into modeling and observational efforts
that investigate all aspects of the ocean’s role in anthropogenic CO2 and heat uptake,
storage and transport including the role of large-scale overturning circulation, water
mass formation, ocean-ice-atmosphere, mixing, mesoscale and biogeochemical
processes. We invite contributions that investigate ocean heat and carbon uptake,
storage and transport on regional to global scales.
Conveners: Thomas L. Froelicher (ETH Zurich), Jaime B. Palter (McGill University), Adele
Morrison (Princeton University), Sarah G. Purkey (Columbia University)
Advances in Biogeochemical and Molecular Microbial Ecological Exploration of
Oxygen-Depleted Pelagic Ecosystems
Session ID#: 9362
Session Description:
Oxygen deficient zones (e.g. eastern tropical Pacific, Arabian Sea, Baltic Sea, Black Sea,
Cariaco Basin) are intrinsic features of the modern oceans, expected to expand in the
future due to climate change. Oxygen stratification establishes multiple chemical
gradients effectively imposing structure on activity and phylogenetic composition of
biotic assemblages within micro-oxic, suboxic, and anoxic layers. Recent evidence
suggests that expanding ocean hypoxia/anoxia accelerates fixed N losses to the
atmosphere, climate active trace gas production and ocean acidification as well as
altering biogeography and biogeochemical cycling of numerous elements. Recent
research combining molecular, geochemical and process rate approaches have provided
new insights into coupled biogeochemical cycling in oxygen-deficient marine waters and
revealed general trends in global distributions of microbial key players. However,
processes controlling biogeochemistry and biological assemblages’ activity and
composition are still poorly understood, thereby limiting our ability to predict effects of
oxygen deprivation on biota and major elemental cycles in future climates. The goals of
this session are to bring together microbiologists and biogeochemists and stimulate
discussion on oxygen minimum zones, anoxic basins, deep hypersaline basins, fjords and
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eutrophied estuaries and coastal waters, to identify unifying principles among these
systems and to explore application of new methodological approaches.
Conveners: Gordon T Taylor (Stony Brook University, School of Marine & Atmospheric
Sciences, Stony Brook, NY), Laura Villanueva (Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea
Research, 't Horntje, Netherlands), Maria G Pachiadaki (Bigelow Lab for Ocean Sciences,
East Boothbay, ME), Martina Sollai (Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, 't
Horntje, Netherlands)
Ocean Deoxygenation: Integrating Coastal and Oceanic Perspectives
Session ID#: 9644
Tuesday, February 23, 2016, 215-216: 8-10 am, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Deoxygenation of coastal and oceanic waters is one of the major
manifestations of global change. But there have generally been two separate schools of
study - one that addresses eutrophication-induced hypoxia in coastal ecosystems and
another that examines naturally occurring oceanic hypoxic zones (including oxygen
minimum and limiting zones, and their shoaling into coastal habitats). Both forms are,
however, predicted to worsen with increasing temperatures, are affected by surface
layer productivity, and affect physiological processes, animal movement and fishing
practices. In this session, we hope to bring these two groups of researchers together to
develop a better understanding of the commonalities and differences in different types
of hypoxic systems, and to examine where and how these realms interact. We especially
encourage talks that, either individually or by clustering contributions, consider similar
processes in different types of systems or examine interfaces. Contributions on
predicted patterns of hypoxia, adaptation to hypoxia, and the effects of hypoxia are
welcomed.
Conveners: Denise Breitburg (Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Edgewater,
MD), Lisa A Levin (University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA)
Trace metal speciation in seawater: measurements, modelling and impact on marine
biogeochemistry
Session ID#: 9231
Wednesday, February 24, 2016, 228-230: 8-10 am, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Global change processes, in particular ocean acidification, are changing the
chemistry of seawater. The carbon dioxide system and trace metal speciation are
expected to be among the chemical components of seawater most strongly affected by
global change processes. The distribution and identity of organic metal complexing
ligands in the marine system, and modelling of the chemical speciation using updated
parameters, play an important role in understanding the changes that take place and in
projecting future changes. This session builds on two SCOR working groups : WG139
which is focused on organic metal-binding ligands; and WG145 which is focused on
modelling metal speciation in seawater. One aspect of metal speciation that is receiving
particular attention is the bioavailability of trace metals, with extensive measurement
programmes on the complexation of bioactive trace metals currently under way, in
particular within the GEOTRACES program. This work is producing exciting new field
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data that will benefit from improved speciation modelling and additional
measurements. We invite contributions on the identification, distribution and
provenance of organic ligands in the marine environment, the modelling of inorganic
and organic metal speciation, and linkages of trace metal speciation with ocean
acidification and other factors of climate change.
Conveners: David R Turner (University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden), Stan MG
van den Berg (University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69, United Kingdom), Sylvia Gertrud
Sander (University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand), Kristen N Buck (University of South
Florida Tampa, Tampa, FL)
Teacher-Researcher Partnerships: working at the interface of science and education to
enhance student learning
Session ID#: 9518
Tuesday, February 23, 2016, RO5: 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Future scientists grow from children who discover a love of science as
students, often because they were inspired at some point by an amazing science
teacher. These science teachers can find inspiration and support by working directly
with researchers in the field. Current research on science education emphasizes the
need for multiple ways to engage students with scientific inquiry. Partnerships between
research scientists and classroom teachers provide authentic experiences that can also
engage students in scientific practices and application. Teachers who experience
research first hand can become better science educators. Researchers can benefit by
having their science translated to a broader audience. Developing and sustaining
effective and reciprocally beneficial teacher-researcher partnerships can be difficult yet
transformational for both parties. How do you make research relevant for target
audiences? How do you sustain those collaborations between researchers and
educators? How can the scientific community support these partnerships in the future?
We invite successful partnerships between researchers and educators, as well as
researchers and teachers intrigued by the idea, to share their ideas and experiences. In
a world where science and ocean literacy is increasingly vital, involving teachers,
students, and their families in scientific inquiry has never been more important.
Conveners: Patricia L Yager (University of Georgia, Athens, GA), Lollie Garay (Redd
School, Houston, TX), Janet Warburton (ARCUS, Fairbanks, AK)
Action! Microbial activity and interaction with organic and inorganic matter in the
dark ocean
Session ID#: 7980
Tuesday, February 23, 2016, Poster Hall, 4-6 pm
Description: The notion of low metabolic activity in the dark ocean is a view from the
past. On the contrary, meso- and bathypelagic microbes exhibit relatively high
biomass production and respiration, variable enzyme activity, and measurable fixation
of inorganic carbon, manifesting that bacteria and archaea are a dynamic component
in earth’s largest habitat. In addition to a lack of data of major parts of the global open
ocean, the quest now is to uncover the source for this metabolic activity, deciphering
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the hot spots of dark ocean microbial interactions with organic matter in all forms and
the potential energy sources utilized. This session invites contributions presenting the
magnitude of bacterial and archaeal activity in the dark ocean, indicating potential
metabolic pathways on an omics level, addressing the relationship between microbes
and the organic matter pool, or linking the composition of organic and inorganic matter
to microbial processes. Thus we seek to paint an interdisciplinary picture of the
microbial processes in the dark global ocean.
Conveners: Thomas Reinthaler (University of Vienna, Department of Limnology and BioOceanography, Vienna, Austria), Roberta Hansman (University of Vienna, Department of
Limnology and Bio-Oceanography, Vienna, Austria)
Atmospheric deposition and ocean biogeochemistry
Session ID#: 9243
Tuesday, Monday, February 22, 2016, 228-230: 8-10 am, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Atmospheric deposition of marine, lithogenic and anthropogenic aerosols is
an important transport pathway for nutrients and contaminants to the surface ocean.
Constraining local, regional and global atmospheric deposition flux estimates and the
bioavailability of aerosol-derived elements and compounds is essential for furthering
understanding of ocean biogeochemistry. This transport pathway acts as an important
chemical bridge between the lithosphere and hydrosphere linking major biogeochemical
cycles. Aerosol emission, transport and deposition processes are, in part, a function of
global change related to changes in land coverage, anthropogenic emissions and
climate. Hence the study of ocean responses will improve our ability to predict future
impacts. The GEOTRACES international program includes objectives related to the
atmospheric input of trace elements and isotopes to accomplish its goal. Other
programs, such as SOLAS and CLIVAR, continue to make significant contributions as well.
This session invites contributions from studies of atmospheric deposition in the marine
environment, including observations of atmospheric deposition fluxes, aerosol
composition, aerosol fractional solubility, the fate of aerosol-derived compounds and
the biological and chemical response to deposition within the surface ocean.
Contributions from global and regional scale field observations, laboratory studies and
modeling efforts are welcomed.
Conveners: Ana M Aguilar-Islas (University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK),
Clifton S Buck (Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, Savannah, GA), Meredith Galanter
Hastings (Brown Univ-Geological Sciences, Providence, RI)
Hot or Not? Interdisciplinary investigations of the drivers and variability of marine
biodiversity and productivity: how do we detect and model change?
Session ID#: 9319
Description: The ocean is highly heterogeneous in terms of productivity and
biodiversity. Upwelling drives narrow bands of high productivity along eastern
boundaries; blooms of varying magnitude and duration punctuate the seasonal cycles of
the open ocean regimes; rich, diverse ecosystems thrive in the polar margins,
particularly at oceanic fronts, polynyas and marginal ice zones. In these systems and
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others, the magnitude and variability of productivity and the relationship to planktonic
diversity is driven by a complex set of biochemical and physical forcings. Understanding
the mechanisms that drive pulsed or sustained enhancements of productivity is critical
to our capacity to model the response of ocean ecosystems to anthropogenic forcing.
Furthermore, linking changes in productivity to planktonic species composition is
needed to understand critical components of ecosystem function, e.g. carbon export.
We invite submissions that address the physical, chemical, and ecological mechanisms
that contribute to episodes of high productivity, as well as submissions that address the
overarching question of how we measure and model changes in marine productivity and
biodiversity in ‘bloom’-prone regions. We particularly encourage submissions that are
interdisciplinary or employ novel methodology.
Conveners: Angelicque E White (Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR), Laurie W
Juranek (Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR), Maria Kavanaugh (Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA), Peter Gaube (Applied Physics Laboratory,
University of Washington, Seattle, WA)
New Orleans 30 Years On: What’s the Future for the Marine Nitrogen Cycle?
Session ID#: 9488
Description: New developments in nitrogen biogeochemistry were the subject of a
session at the Ocean Sciences Meeting thirty years ago. Since then there have been
many unexpected discoveries and new tools have been developed not only for studying
the nitrogen cycle, but also for integrating the nitrogen cycle with other biogeochemical
cycles and for extrapolating over space and time. This session will cover all aspects of
the nitrogen cycle, from unanswered questions remaining from 3 decades ago, to newly
discovered processes and features of nitrogen cycling in the global ocean. Speakers will
be encouraged not only to talk about their recent work and discoveries, but to reserve
time and present a slide on what they see as the future important and significant
questions for understanding the global ocean nitrogen cycle, its biogeochemical
interactions and impacts of global climate change.
Conveners: Jonathan Zehr (University of California, Santa Cruz), Bess B Ward (Princeton
University)
Recent Advances in In-Situ Biogeochemical Instrumentation, Sensors, and Observatory
Science
Session ID#: 9932
Friday, February 26, 2016, RO4: 8-10 am, 10-30 am-12:30 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Complex interactions of physical, biological, and chemical parameters
affect aquatic biogeochemical cycling over a wide range of spatial and temporal scales,
making observations of marine ecosystems particularly challenging. Development and
deployment of in-situ technologies to measure these parameters have thus been widely
recognized as a research priority in the oceanographic community, to both improve
scientific understanding and inform management and policy decisions governing these
historical “undersampled” regions. As advances are made in development of in-situ
sensors and instrumentation, it is critical to share both successes and challenges across
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the community; as such, this interdisciplinary session is targeted at both scientists and
engineers to facilitate accelerated improvement of the next generation of sensors and
instrumentation technologies, data analysis techniques applied to high-resolution
sensor data, and calibration/validation mechanisms. Topics may include: (1) adaptation
of traditional instrumentation for field use, i.e., “field hardening,” (2) development of
novel in-situ hardware (new techniques or new targets), (3) new deployment or
operation techniques that improve data quality (online calibration, reduced energy
consumption, reduced biofouling), (4) cost-lowering techniques, (5) data analysis, data
quality, or data distribution improvements, or (6) lessons learned from existing
deployments that provide guidance for improvements in hardware and/or software
methods. This session would be an ideal candidate to include hardware or software
tutorials.
Conveners: Amy V Mueller (University of Washington, School of Oceanography, Seattle,
WA), Zhaohui Aleck Wang (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA),
Brian T Glazer (University of Hawaii at Manoa, Department of Oceanography, Honolulu,
HI), Anna Michel (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA)
Frontiers in Ocean Color Remote Sensing: Science and Challenges
Session ID#: 9587
Friday, February 26, 2016, RO2: 8-10 am, 10:30-12:30, 2-4 pm, Posters: 4-6 pm
Description: The advent of satellite oceanography in late 1970's has given rise to a
realization that our ocean plays a critical role in weather, climate and sustaining life on
Earth. Satellites have revolutionized our understanding of linkages among the ocean
and other components of the Earth system and have revealed a diversity and complexity
in ocean ecosystems not previously appreciated. Further, the explosive growth of
human populations along coastal margins places increasing pressure on these
ecosystems, modifying natural processes and putting life, health, and property at risk
from hazards inherent to the ocean. Scientific observations from the vantage point of
space help solve important problems. Advanced technologies and frequent, repeated,
multi-scale satellite observations, in combination with field measurements, are essential
for observing and predicting changes. Without global ocean color satellite data,
humanity loses its capacity to take Earth’s pulse, explore its unseen world, and monitor
our living marine resources. This session explores the next generation of ocean science
questions from satellites and challenges to those observations from science, technology,
and modeling perspectives. Our goal is not only to understand and monitor the Earth’s
changing climate and ecosystems, but also to enable the next generation of students to
make new discoveries.
Conveners: Antonio Mannino (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD),
Jeremy Werdell (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD), Emmanuel Boss
(University of Maine, Orono, ME)
Ocean Ecology and Biogeochemisty from Space: Next Generation
Session ID#: 9652
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Description: In the thirty five years since the launch of the Color Zone Color Scanner,
great strides have been made to interpret remote sensing data and provide a better
understanding of ocean biology and biogeochemistry. Next generation instruments and
technologies will address user needs for an improved view of the ocean. For example,
lidar and hyperspectral ocean color data will allow us to see deeper into the ocean and
provide new opportunities to observe the oceans at a resolution not currently possible.
Furthermore, polarimetry can improve the characterization of ocean particle
compositions and atmospheric corrections for ocean color retrievals. This session aims
to explore the most current ocean observing technology and its potential for advancing
quantitative ocean biogeochemical properties. We invite abstracts that focus
onexperimental results using the latest observing technologies (in-situ or remote
platforms) addressing topics of ocean biology, chemistry, and air-sea interactions.
Conveners: Jason Graff (Oregon State University, Department of Botany & Plant
Pathology, Corvallis, OR), Chris A Hostetler (NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton,
VA), Ivona Cetinic (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/USRA, Ocean Ecology Laboratory,
Greenbelt, MD)
Present and Future Coastal and Inland Aquatic Remote Sensing for Science and
Societal Benefit
Session ID#: 9879
Tuesday, February 23, 2016, 222: 8-10 am, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Coastal and inland waters are vital to life on Earth. Watershed interactions
with lakes and estuaries play a critical role in global biogeochemical cycles, in shaping
and sustaining marine and terrestrial ecosystems, and can impact human economy,
health and safety. However, these vital resources are vulnerable to climate change and
increasing anthropogenic pressures. Remote sensing is a critical tool for the study of
these systems on regional scales. This includes observations of physical factors in coastal
ecosystems, such as the water surface temperature and height; suspended sediments;
watershed evapotranspiration, soil moisture, and water body evaporation; and
biospheric observations, including phytoplankton biomass and species composition;
land cover/land use; benthic conditions, emergent and submerged aquatic vegetation,
and coral reefs. These observations are being made with current satellite and airborne
active and passive sensors. In the future, new space borne imaging spectrometers and
other new technologies could overcome many limitations of current systems and
transform observational capabilities. This session will explore the latest interdisciplinary
research, the challenges in coastal and inland aquatic remote sensing, and plans for
future development of instruments and the utilization of coastal and inland aquatic
remote sensing (in situ, airborne, and satellite) for science and to societal benefit.
Conveners: Curtiss O Davis (Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR), Kevin Ross Turpie
(University of Maryland Baltimore County, Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology,
Baltimore, MD), Jorge Vazquez (NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA), Wesley
Moses (Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC)
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Interactive Effects of Global Warming and Low Oxygen Stress: Temperature Regulation
of Dissolved Oxygen Supply and Respiratory Oxygen Demand in Pelagic Food Webs
Session ID #: 7557
Description: Temperature directly influences oxygen solubility in seawater as well as the
metabolic demand of aquatic ectotherms. To effectively assess the impacts of hypoxic
stress, it is necessary to consider the effects of temperature on both oxygen availability
and animal metabolism. Underlying theories are developing that strive to predict effects
of hypoxia and facilitate quantitative comparisons across ocean ecosystems. Oxygen
concentration alone is not sufficient to categorize hypoxia biologically and not all
hypoxia is equal. Temperature is an essential component defining hypoxic conditions,
thus geographic, seasonal and inter-annual differences in temperature can dramatically
impact the severity of hypoxia even at similar oxygen concentrations. This session will
emphasize synthesis of developing approaches to assess the impacts of hypoxia by fully
considering the effects of temperature on oxygen availability and animal metabolism
across multiple temporal and spatial scales. In order to assess the effects of globally
expanding low oxygen zones, we propose to bring together physiologists and biological
oceanographers that focus on field observations and experiments as well as ecological
modelers to review and expand our analysis of the temperature controls of oxygen
availability and demand by zooplankton and their fish predators.
Conveners: Mike Roman (University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science,
Horn Point Laboratory, Cambridge, MD), Brad Seibel (University of Rhode Island,
Kingston, RI)
Coastal Wetlands as an Important Interface Between Land, Sea and Atmosphere:
Capturing Temporal and Spatial Variability in Chemical Fluxes
Session ID#: 9466
Monday, February 22, 2016, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Coastal wetlands, including tidal marshes, mangroves, and seagrass beds,
occur along much of the world’s shoreline, with an area of ~500,000 km2. These
ecosystems continue to experience rapid loss due to coastal development, sea level rise,
hydrological and sediment supply alterations, and other processes. In addition to their
ecological roles, coastal wetlands are a major sink for carbon dioxide and contain
important carbon stocks in soils and biomass. Under some circumstances they may be
important sinks or sources for other greenhouse gases such as methane and nitrous
oxide. Lateral fluxes via tidal exchange between wetlands and adjacent estuaries and
oceans may also be important to wetland and connected water body chemical budgets.
However the magnitude and processes controlling exchange between coastal wetlands,
the atmosphere and ocean remain uncertain, due to the large spatial and temporal
variability in these fluxes, and lack of a theoretical framework. This session will
investigate exchange across the interface between coastal wetlands, the atmosphere
and the adjacent ocean. We welcome submissions on chemical exchange, including
greenhouse gases, carbon, alkalinity, and nutrients, across all spatial and temporal
scales. Presentations that highlight novel instrumentation approaches, high-resolution
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time series, spatio-temporal variability, isotopic sources, and modeling approaches are
encouraged.
Conveners: Meagan Eagle Gonneea (USGS, Woods Hole, MA), Kevin D Kroeger (USGS,
Woods Hole, MA), Zhaohui Aleck Wang (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Marine
Chemistry and Geochemistry, Woods Hole, MA), Serena Moseman-Valtierra (University
of Rhode Island, Department of Biological Sciences, Kingston, RI)
Modeling and observing the physical-biological interactions that organize the spatiotemporal distribution of biomass in marine ecosystems
Session ID#: 9882
Tuesday, February 23, 2016, RO2: 8-10 am, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: The session invites a broad range of interdisciplinary papers addressing
physical-biological interactions, aiming for an improved and more holistic understanding
of marine ecosystems. Recently, new instruments and satellite technology have
revealed unprecedented detail in the distributions of a wide variety of marine
organisms, at both micro and large scales. For example, a microstructure profiler
equipped with a new laser fluorescence probe resolves the highly intermittent
organization of phytoplankton into millimeter-scale aggregates and larger-scale thin
layers. At much larger scales, satellite observations processed by sophisticated
algorithms capture phytoplankton community structure and cell size distributions.
Physical oceanographic features, such as oceanic currents, jets, eddies, etc. also
influence distributions and dispersal pathways of organisms, such as larval and adult
fish, and other marine organisms. These patterns of organization impact our
understanding of how organisms interact with the environment and with each other.
Diverse tools are required to make comprehensive observations across the relevant
spatio-temporal scales, and integrated bio-physical models are needed to understand
and realistically represent the impact of physical-biological interactions. It is therefore
important to bring together researchers working at the interface of their disciplines to
encourage new multi-scale collaborative studies of marine ecosystems.
Conveners: Natalia Sidorovskaia (University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, LA),
Irina Rypina (WHOI, Woods Hole, MA), Sherwood Lan Smith (JAMSTEC, Yokohama,
Japan), Agostino Merico (Leibniz Center for Tropical Marine Ecology, Bremen, Germany)
From WOCE through CLIVAR to GO-SHIP: Results from Global Repeat Hydrographic
Surveys
Session ID#: 9251
Friday, February 26, 2016, 225-227: 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: For the past 25 years, countries from around the world have participated in
obtaining multiple, high-quality, repeat, global, hydrographic transects. The 1990’s
World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) included some 30 countries. It focused on
improving our understanding of ocean circulation, heat and carbon transport through
the acquisition of a one-time global survey. The JGOFS program that sought to
investigate mechanisms controlling concentrations of inorganic carbon and associated
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biogeochemical parameters and fluxes augmented WOCE. Ten years later CLIVAR began
repeating transects focused on trends in ocean climate. The international Global Ocean
Ship-based Hydrographic Investigations Program (GO-SHIP) carries this task forward by
identifying natural variability and anthropogenic changes since WOCE. In this session,
we invite contributions using and interpreting these physical, chemical and biological
observations. The session will highlight research that presents and interprets changes
that have occurred over the last 25 years using the multitude of observed properties. A
full range of contributions is solicited from surface to bottom waters based on rosette,
underway or float observations. All avenues of investigation are welcome, including
those using related data, as well as modeling and remote sensing studies performing
comparisons and/or assimilations.
Conveners: Alison M Macdonald (WHOI), Richard A Feely (NOAA PMEL), Brendan R
Carter (University of Washington, JISAO), Toste S Tanhua (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre
for Ocean Research Kiel)
Records of Carbon Burial and Biogeochemical Cycling in Coastal Wetlands: Response
to Past, Present, and Future Sea-Level Rise and Global Climate Change
Session ID#: 9531
Description: Coastal wetlands, broadly defined as salt marshes, mangrove forests, and
seagrass meadows, are important transitional ecosystems that incorporate
characteristics of both marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Along with providing critical
habitat for many economically important and protected species, they also provide
critical ecosystem services (including carbon sequestration and wave and storm-surge
protection), thus having high economic value. These highly productive ecosystems
account for a disproportionately large amount of total organic carbon burial in marine
environments compared to their surface area and therefore play an important role in
the global carbon cycle. Among the myriad of global threats to coastal environments,
accelerated sea-level rise is perhaps the greatest threat to coastal wetlands. Sea-level
rise and associated global climate change are expected to cause fundamental
biogeochemical changes in coastal wetland ecosystems that may provide a positive
feedback on climate change, as once sequestered organic carbon is oxidized and
returned to the atmosphere. We invite submissions that focus on the relationship
between sea-level rise and biogeochemical function in coastal wetlands across multiple
disciplines and spatio-temporal scales, including modern process-based ecosystem
function studies, paleo-records of biogeochemical and sedimentary response to past
sea-level rise, and projections of future trends and behavior.
Conveners: Ryan P Moyer (FL Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Fish and
Wildlife Research Institute, St. Petersburg, FL), Simon E Engelhart (University of Rhode
Island, Kingston, RI), Andrew Kemp (Tufts University, Department of Earth and Ocean
Sciences, Medford, MA), Joseph M Smoak (University of South Florida St. Petersburg, St
Petersburg, FL)
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Autonomous Observations of Coupled Physical-Biogeochemical Properties and
Processes in the Open Ocean: From the Diel and Local Scales to Climate on the Global
Scale
Session ID#: 9514
Tuesday, February 23, 2016, RO1: 8-10 am, Posters: 4-6 pm
Description: Profiling floats, gliders, mooring and instrumented animals were initially
developed to address questions relevant to physical oceanography. Thanks to the
development of miniature low-power biogeochemical sensors, these platforms can now
perform mutli-disciplinary measurements over a wide range of spatial (sub-mesoscale to
global) and temporal (hourly to inter-annual to decadal) scales, including in highly
remote areas and harsh-sea conditions. A global robotic observation system based on
these networks is thus now being progressively built which will allow reducing
uncertainties in biogeochemical stocks and fluxes and detect change in underlying
processes. In this context, the present session welcome submissions on a variety of
topics, which include: emerging technologic developments in sensors and platforms;
concepts and methods to address optimal observing design from local to global scales
(e.g. OSSE); integration and fusion of multiplatform data with remote
sensing (altimetry, ocean color); use of data in initialization/validation of coupled
physical biogeochemical-modeling, including science and operational aspects;
fundamental science questions (e.g. phytoplankton phenology and bloom dynamics,
export, respiration, nutrient obduction, OMZs) related to coupled physicalbiogeochemical processes at any scale; use of autonomous platforms data, in particular
in real-time, in support of outreach activities.
Conveners: Herve Claustre (Laboratoire d'Oceanographie de Villefranche, Villefranchesur-Mer, France), Emmanuel Boss (University of Maine, Orono, ME), Richard S Lampitt
(National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, United Kingdom), Pierre Testor
(Laboratoire d'Océanographie et de Climatologie, Paris, France)
Gases as Tracers of Ocean Physical and Biogeochemical Processes
Session ID#: 7452
Thursday, February 25, 2016, 210: 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: This session seeks to bring together the gas tracer community to exchange
knowledge regarding new observations, applications, and/or modeling of gases as
tracers for understanding oceanic physical and biogeochemical processes. We welcome
abstracts on a variety of topics including deriving biogeochemical rates from gases,
distributions of natural and anthropogenic gases and their isotopes in the ocean,
atmospheric measurements as they relate to ocean processes, tracer release
experiments, and process studies of air-sea transfer mechanisms. Presentations
on observations, method development, modeling, and data synthesis and interpretation
are all encouraged.
Conveners: Roberta Claire Hamme (University of Victoria, School of Earth and Ocean
Sciences, Victoria, BC, Canada), David T Ho (University of Hawaii, Oceanography,
Honolulu, HI)
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Plankton diversity: patterns, processes, and methods
Session ID#: 9371
Friday, February 26, 2016, RO3: 8-10 am, 10:30 am-12:30 pm, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6
pm
Description: Recent field, laboratory, modeling, and theoretical efforts have improved
understanding of the patterns of plankton diversity and the mechanisms that maintain
them, as well as the broader importance of diversity in setting ecosystem properties and
functions. Despite significant progress, considerable research challenges and
uncertainties remain. For this session, we invite contributions addressing these and
related fundamental questions: How is plankton diversity measured, manipulated, and
modeled?; What are the observed and simulated patterns of plankton diversity?; What
controls the diversity of plankton?; and, How does diversity affect broader ecosystem
properties and functions? We welcome contributions from any methodological
approach focusing on any aquatic system or taxonomic groups. We particularly
encourage studies that diagnose and interpret spatial and temporal diversity gradients
across a range of scales and organisms, and examine the dynamic interplay between
physical and biological processes. The goals of the session are to: a) build understanding
of the patterns, regulation, and importance of plankton diversity, b) highlight areas of
persistent uncertainty as focal areas for future research, and c) provide an
interdisciplinary forum for communicating novel methodological and conceptual
developments in the study of plankton diversity.
Conveners: Andrew Barton (Princeton University Geophysical Fluid Dynamics
Laboratory, Princeton, NJ), Sergio Vallina (Instituto de Ciencias del Mar, Consejo
Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, Barcelona, Spain), Pedro Cermeño (Marine
Sciences Institute (ICM - CSIC), Barcelona, Spain)
How do the carbon pumps pump? Mechanisms of the solubility and biological pumps
Session ID#: 7590
Tuesday, February 23, 2016, 225-227: 8-10 am, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Cumulatively since pre-industrial times the ocean has absorbed 40% of
anthropogenic carbon emissions, and thus has significantly modulated climate change.
The ocean’s carbon uptake is mediated by subduction of carbon rich water (solubility
pump) and by the export to depth of organic particles and dissolved organic carbon
(biological carbon pump). There is much yet unknown about the underlying biological,
chemical and physical mechanisms of these pumps, and thus, substantial uncertainty
about the how ocean carbon cycling will evolve over the coming century. Developments
in sensor technology, particle export techniques, global data compilations, time series
observations, and modeling all are enabling new understanding of the carbon pumps
and their potential for variability and change. Observational, experimental, empirical
and modeling studies addressing the ocean carbon pumps are welcomed to this session.
Conveners: Frederic A.C. Le Moigne (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research
Kiel, Marine Biogeochemistry, Kiel, Germany), Galen A McKinley (Univ. Wisconsion Madison, Madison, WI), Stephanie Henson (National Oceanography Center, Liverpool,
L3, United Kingdom), Nicole S Lovenduski (University of Colorado, Boulder, CO)
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Plankton food webs and the efficiency of the biological pump
Session ID#: 9650
Description: Predicting the impact of anthropogenic forcing on the biological pump
requires understanding the various processes concomitantly affecting export, including
gravitational flux of particles, active vertical migration by mesozooplankton and
micronekton, and the production of refractory carbon by microbial communities. These
are all ultimately related to plankton structure and trophic efficiency of the grazer
community. A mechanistic understanding is limited by the lack of simultaneous
measurements of carbon export, trophic structure, specific phytoplankton production
rates and energy transfer through the plankton food web. However, our ability to
assess planktonic ecosystem trophic efficiency is increasing rapidly. Compound-specific
isotope analyses allow detailed estimates of food web structure, triple oxygen isotopes
and oxygen:argon ratios can determine net:gross production, combinations of in situ
grazing with pigment, molecular, and isotopic tools allow estimation of group-specific
consumption rates, various “-omics” tools help determine the distribution and activity
of organisms with specific biogeochemical roles, and modeling advances allow
comparisons to be made across different ecosystems and ecosystem states. We invite
presentations that couple such novel investigations of the efficiency and character of
the plankton to the strength of the biological pump, particularly those comparing
multiple ecosystem states in which export is measured simultaneously with different
trophic structures.
Conveners: Moira Decima (NIWA National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research,
Wellington, New Zealand), Michael R Stukel (Florida State University, Earth, Ocean and
Atmospheric Science, Tallahassee, FL, United States)
Predicting the ecological effects of multiple environmental changes: insight through
the lens of existing natural gradients and proxy records
Session ID#: 9513
Description: Sharp increases in atmospheric CO2 are causing ocean warming,
acidification and deoxygenation, as well as changes to patterns of primary productivity
and consequently food supply to marine organisms. Rates of change are unprecedented,
raising questions about whether (and how) species will adapt, communities will change,
and if these responses will reflect synergistic interactions among multiple stressors. The
potential impact of multiple environmental stressors can be examined through: 1)
laboratory experiments, 2) studies of ecological dynamics along natural environmental
gradients, and 3) examinations of changes in the fossil and/or sedimentary geochemical
record. The latter two offer the advantage of illuminating responses over a complete
range of variable space for multiple stressors and often account for adaptive plasticity
arising from the evolutionary history of organisms; both of which are significantly less
tractable in laboratory experiments. Thus, this session invites submissions that offer
insight into future ecological responses to global change through examination of species
and ecosystems dynamics along natural environmental gradients (e.g. CO2 vents, oxygen
minimum zones, latitudinal, estuaries) and among environmental perturbations in the
fossil record.
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Conveners: Erik A Sperling (Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Biological
Oceanography, La Jolla, CA), Christina Frieder (University of Southern California,
Biological Sciences, Los Angeles, CA), Kristy Kroeker (University of California Santa Cruz,
Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Santa Cruz, CA), Sarah E Moffitt
(University of California Davis, Davis, CA)
Is Peak Oil Dead and What Does it Mean for Climate Change?
Session ID#: 7260
Description: In recent years, US oil and natural gas production have exploded due to
fracking (hydraulic fracturing coupled with horizontal drilling in shale source rocks),
leading to claims that “peak oil is dead.” While the so-called “shale revolution” is
regarded in the fossil fuel community as a great achievement, many climate scientists
and policymakers think that fracking and other unconventional fossil fuel production will
cause the world to exceed even the most extreme IPCC greenhouse-gas emission
scenarios. This session seeks to bring together fossil fuel experts and climate experts for
a daring exploration of the new landscape created by fracking and other unconventional
methods of fossil fuel recovery. Contributions are sought on (1) what unconventional
sources mean for the theory of peak oil; (2) what an explosion of new fossil fuel
emissions might mean for global climate change; and (3) what geological, economic, or
policy forces might limit fossil fuel production.
Conveners: Asher Miller (Post Carbon Institute, Santa Rosa, CA), Warren J Wiscombe
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD), David Fridley (Lawrence Berkeley
National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA), James E Hansen (Columbia University of New York,
Palisades, NY)
Evolving Biologically-Enabled Ocean Observing Systems: Integrating Biological
Observations with Physicochemical Measurements for Informed Ecosystem-Based
Decision Making
Session ID#: 9235
Description: The rapidly expanding efforts to integrate biological, physical, and chemical
measurements into a “whole ecosystem” understanding of coastal and oceanic regimes
will play an increasing role in informing conservation and management needs.
Sustained, interdisciplinary observing now spans spatial, temporal, and trophic scales,
utilizing a wide variety of platforms (e.g., moored observatories, gliders, profiling floats,
satellites) and technologies, including rapidly advancing biological observing capability,
such as eDNA tools for assessing biodiversity, in-situ bio-optical instrumentation for
measuring planktonic assemblages, acoustic telemetry for tracking tagged animals, and
passive acoustic monitoring of marine mammal vocalizations. Expanding national and
international networks contribute to the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), the
Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON), Animal Telemetry Network (ATN)
and Ocean Tracking Network (OTN), Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI), Ocean
Networks Canada (ONC), Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER), and other programs
collecting long-term biological observations. Incorporation of living marine resources
into the ocean observing framework is a high priority as we strive toward a long-term
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understanding of ecosystem trends to inform policy in a world faced by multiple natural
and anthropogenic stressors to our coastal and marine environments. This session will
address both advances in sensors and in systems necessary to achieve this long-term
understanding.
Conveners: Rebecca E. Green (Bureau of Ocean Energy Management), Gabrielle
Canonico (U.S. IOOS), Barbara Kirkpatrick (GCOOS), Heidi M. Sosik (Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institution)
Coordinated with: Jay Pearlman (J&F Enterprise), Samantha Simmons (Marine Mammal
Commission), Francisco Chavez (MBARI)
Physical-biogeochemical coupling in oceanic eddies and fronts: from submeso- to
mesoscale processes
Session ID#: 9339
Thursday, February 25, 2016, 225-227: 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Eddies, fronts, and upwelling systems are ubiquitous features with
essential contributions on disturbing and transporting materials and energies in the
global ocean. Physical and biogeochemical processes in these systems have been long
recognized as “dynamically active” that are typically different from basin-scale
adjustments. With recent advancements in in-situ monitoring, remote sensing and highresolution numerical models, physical-biogeochemical coupling in these systems
indicates prominent spatial and temporal variability that could be potentially related to
the nature of mesoscale and submesoscale dynamics. Systematic understanding of the
underlying dynamics is required to better interpret observed ocean biogeochemical
variations, which can further advance the understanding of global carbon cycle and
ultimately climate change. Both observations (in situ and satellite) and numerical
models are able to provide clues to how these dynamics affect ocean biogeochemistry
from nutrient cycling to ecosystem structures, as well as how ocean biogeochemistry
evolve with mesoscale and submesoscale dynamics. In this session, we welcome
contributions from any discipline that examine topics about physical-biogeochemical
coupling related to mesoscale and submesoscale dynamics from snapshots to long-term
temporal scales. Researches that address impacts of eddies, fronts, and upwelling
systems on biological, chemical, and high-trophic level processes are particularly
encouraged for submission.
Conveners: Peng Xiu (South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, State Key Laboratory of
Tropical Oceanography, Guangzhou, China), Kuanbo Zhou (Singapore-MIT Alliance for
Research and Technology, Center for Environmental Sensing and Modeling (CENSAM)
IRG, Singapore, Singapore), Minhan Dai (Xiamen University, State Key Laboratory of
Marine Environmental Sciences, Xiamen, China), Arne Biastoch (GEOMAR Helmholtz
Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Kiel, Germany)
Linking Optical and Chemical Properties of Organic Matter
Session ID#: 9252
Friday, February 26, 2016, 228-230: 10:30 am-12:30 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
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Description: During the last decade there has been a substantial increase in the number
of studies using the optical properties (absorbance and fluorescence) of dissolved
organic matter (DOM) as a proxy for its chemical properties in freshwater, estuaries and
the coastal and open ocean. As a result progress has been made on finding the actual
chemical compounds or phenomena responsible for DOM’s optical properties.
Techniques such as ultrahigh resolution mass spectrometry have played an important
role. However much requires further study. Spectroscopic measurements which are
relatively easier to employ in synoptic and high resolution sampling of DOM distribution
and dynamics offer unique insight to major advances in our understanding of organic
matter cycling in all aquatic ecosystems. We invite talks and posters that specifically
make connections between optical signals in absorbance and/or fluorescence and
biogeochemical properties of freshwaters (lakes, rivers), estuaries and the coastal and
open ocean. We encourage studies that describe DOM’s optical and chemical linkages at
interfaces: terrestrial-aquatic, ocean-atmosphere, benthic-pelagic, dissolved-particulate,
water-sediment, etc. We also welcome contributions that utilize remote sensing and insitu monitoring to make connections between optical and chemical properties of
organic matter.
Conveners: Christopher L Osburn (North Carolina State University Raleigh, Raleigh, NC),
Robert G Spencer (Florida State University, Department of Earth, Ocean and
Atmospheric Science, Tallahassee, FL), Colin A Stedmon (Technical University of
Denmark - Space, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark), Thomas S Bianchi (University of Florida,
Geological Sciences, Gainesville, FL)
Global teleconnections originating in the Southern Ocean on Decadal to Centennial
Timescales
Session ID#: 9498
Description: The Southern Ocean (SO) plays an important role in the global climate
system as it connects the major ocean basins and is the origin of bottom water, which
influences the strength of the meridional overturning circulation. Oceanic variability in
the SO has also been shown to propagate through atmospheric pathways. The goal of
this session is a clearer understanding of the teleconnections that originate in the SO
and propagate to lower latitudes, with a focus on (i) identifying modes and mechanisms
of SO internal and externally forced variability on decadal to centennial timescales, (ii)
determining pathways and magnitudes of how SO variability influences physical and
biogeochemical oceanic as well as atmospheric conditions elsewhere on the planet, and
(iii) quantifying the potential role of the SO in explaining hiatus decades of global mean
temperature in a warming climate. We particularly invite studies that deal with
propagation pathways of anomalies originating from the SO, and identify regions that
are most affected by SO natural variability and SO climate change during the 21st
century. Studies from both the modeling and observational community looking at these
phenomena during past and present times and under climate warming scenarios are
welcome.
Conveners: Anna Cabre (University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA), Kyle Armour
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA) Torge Martin (GEOMAR
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Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Kiel, Germany), Irina Marinov (University of
Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA)
Trace Metal Bioavailability and Metal-Microorganism Interactions
Session ID#: 8373
Thursday, February 25, 2016, 228-230: 8-10 am, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: The distributions of trace elements in the marine environment are
undeniably linked to biological processes. Low concentrations or low bioavailability of
trace metals in the water column can lead to micronutrient limitation and stress, while
greater availability may increase biological demand and enhance the growth of
microorganisms. Recent advances in high throughput biological techniques, including
“omics”, as well as high-resolution geochemical data from the GEOTRACES program
(www.geotraces.org) has lead to a wealth of new data. However, meaningful
interpretation of these data often still relies on process studies, incubation-based
experimental work, or the culturing of representative or novel organisms. This session
invites contributions on every scale of metal-microorganism interactions, ranging from
small-scale mechanistic work to large-scale biogeochemical cycle studies. We encourage
abstracts that investigate trace metal acquisition strategies, cellular metabolism,
chemical speciation and bioavailability, and/or studies that link trace metal and
biological water column data. Presentations that strive to better understand the
biological control exerted on the distribution of trace elements in the marine
environment are especially encouraged.
Conveners: Julia M. Gauglitz (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Marine Chemistry
and Geochemistry, Woods Hole, MA), Randelle Bundy (Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution, Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry, Woods Hole, MA), Jill N. Sutton
(IUEM/UBO, Technopôle Brest-Iroise, Place Nicolas Copernic, Plouzané, France)
Beyond Redfield - Elemental Ratios as Tracers and Drivers of Biodiversity and
Biogeochemical Function in a Changing Ocean
Session ID#: 9583
Friday, February 26, 2016, 225-227: 10:30 am-12:30 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Microbial life in the ocean contains immense biodiversity, yet its collective
activity yields tightly linked, global cycles of key nutrients. Almost 80 years ago, A.C.
Redfield discovered that relatively invariant elemental ratios found in marine organisms
are intimately entwined with the co-variation of these elements in the ocean. However,
recent studies have demonstrated the potential for both large-scale variation in nutrient
uptake ratios as well as the influence of nutrient ratios on plankton biodiversity and
ocean biogeochemical functioning. These findings have broad implications for the
ocean’s ‘biological pump’ that links nutrient and carbon cycling and its role in controlling
atmospheric CO2 and thereby Earth’s climate.
This session will bring together observationalists, experimentalists, theoreticians, and
modelers from a range of disciplines to understand (1) how biogeochemical
stoichiometry can be used to understand the coupling of major elemental cycles, (2) the
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mechanisms leading to different ratios of nutrients in ocean water or plankton, or (3)
the influence of elemental ratios on plankton physiology, biodiversity, and distribution.
We invite studies that utilize novel field, culture, theory, and/or modeling approaches to
address these questions with the goal of achieving a new synthesis regarding
biogeochemical stoichiometry in the ocean and its application to key questions.
Conveners: Mark A Altabet (University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, MA),
James J Elser (Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ), Adam Martiny (University of
California, Irvine, Earth System Science, Irvine, CA), Curtis A Deutsch (University of
Washington Seattle Campus, School of Oceanography, Seattle, WA)
Integrating approaches to understanding the distribution and transfer of trace
elements in the upper water column
Session ID#: 8750
Description: Micronutrient cycling in the upper water column involves a complex
interplay of physical, chemical and biological processes operating in concert. Thus, by
nature, the study of micronutrient cycles is interdisciplinary. Resolving these processes
can be challenging, but the combined use of observations, experiments and models has
led to the better understanding of biogeochemical cycling of trace elements and their
isotopes (TEI). In recent years there have been significant advances in analytical
capabilities, and there are a number of ongoing large-scale field programs (such as
GEOTRACES, AMT, and CLIVAR) that provide the perfect platform for conducting basinscale studies of this nature. We invite presentations that take interdisciplinary,
integrated approaches to quantify micronutrient fluxes and transformations in the
upper water column, with a focus on geochemical interactions. Submissions are
encouraged from field studies, laboratory-based investigations and modelling studies in
order to assess state-of-the-art applications and future direction for TEI studies.
Conveners: Rachel Shelley (LEMAR/UBO, Brest, France), Peter L Morton (Florida State
University, Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Science, Tallahassee, FL),
Sunil Kumar Singh (Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad, India)
Kinetics: the force driving trace metal distributions in marine waters
Session ID#: 9486
Description: Kinetics, sensu lato, play a key role in controlling concentrations of trace
metals in marine waters and thereby shape their distributions. Trace metals undergo a
range of kinetically controlled reactions with dissolved and particulate organic and
inorganic compounds in seawater. The emerging results from the International
GEOTRACES campaign illustrate more uneven distributions of many trace metals and
isotopes in the world’s ocean than expected. Our understanding of the kinetic supply
and removal processes is clearly underdeveloped. Quantitative information on the
kinetics of the processes involved in trace metal cycling is required to parametrise
biogeochemical processes in regional and global ocean models. This will then allow us to
interpret the elemental distributions in emerging GEOTRACES sections. We invite
submissions on the kinetics of trace metal cycling in the ocean, the formation and
dissociation kinetics of organic complexes and inorganic colloids, the kinetics of uptake
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and release of trace metals by bacteria, phyto- and zooplankton, kinetics of the trace
metal release by the microbial decomposition of organic material, the kinetics of metal
redox processes, the loss of trace metals by scavenging and sinking, and modelling
approaches that require parameterisation of kinetics for a more realistic view of ocean
biogeochemistry.
Conveners: Christian Schlosser (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel,
Chemical Oceanography, Kiel, Germany), Eric P. Achterberg (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre
for Ocean Research Kiel, Chemical Oceanography, Kiel, Germany), Christoph D Voelker
(Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz-Center for Polar and Marine Research
Bremerhaven, Bremerhaven, Germany), Alessandro Tagliabue (University of Liverpool,
Earth, Ocean and Ecological Sciences, Liverpool, United Kingdom)
The role of particles in the cycling of trace elements and their isotopes in the ocean
Session ID#: 7493
Tuesday, February 23, 2016, 228-230: 8-10 am, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: A number of trace metals are thought to control marine ecosystem
features and biological productivity. While trace elements in the dissolved phase have
been the focus of many investigations, we are still largely ignorant of the large scale
distribution of particulate trace elements and their size partitioning and chemical
composition. The GEOTRACES program, which aims to provide a comprehensive view of
the distribution of trace elements and their isotopes (TEIs) in the world's oceans, is
providing new insights on these aspects. Furthermore, there is a crucial need to
understand the exchange mechanisms between particulate and dissolved pools,
including adsorption, desorption, aggregation, precipitation, biological uptake and
remineralization processes. This session seeks to bring together scientists interested in
better constraining the role of ocean particles in the biogeochemical cycles of TEIs, in
different oceanic environments, such as the continental shelves and slopes, the
nepheloid layers, or the particle-poor regions of the open ocean. We invite abstracts on
all aspects of oceanic particulate TEIs, through experimental, in situ and modeling
approaches.
Conveners: Hélène Planquette (LEMAR, CNRS, Plouzané, France), Phoebe J. Lam
(University of California Santa Cruz, Department of Ocean Sciences, Santa Cruz, CA),
Benjamin S. Twining (Bigelow Lab for Ocean Sciences, East Boothbay, ME)
Trace Elements and Isotopes at the Interfaces of the Atlantic Ocean
Session ID#: 9208
Monday, February 22, 2016, 228-230: 10:30 am-12:30 pm, Posters: 4-6 pm
Description: Trace elements play a crucial role in the ocean. Some are toxic at high
concentrations, others serve as essential micronutrients in the many metabolic
processes active in marine organisms. Some trace elements and their isotopes (TEIs) are
diagnostic and allow the quantification of specific oceanic mechanisms. Studying the
biogeochemical cycles of TEIs is thus necessary to deepen our understanding of carbon
and nutrient cycling, climate change, ocean ecosystems and environmental
contamination. The Atlantic Ocean is one of the primary CO2 sinks of the world ocean
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and one of the most biologically productive. Recently, full-depth high resolution
measurement campaigns, especially in the framework of the international GEOTRACES
program, have revolutionized our understanding of the TEI cycling in the Atlantic Ocean.
However, processes occurring at the oceanic interfaces are very complex and need
more attention. The aim of this session is to increase our understanding of the exchange
of TEIs at the interfaces between the ocean and i) the atmosphere, ii) the continents
(e.g. by rivers and groundwater), iii) the marine sediments, and iv) the ridges. We will
particularly encourage contributions dealing with interdisciplinary studies, with new
insights gained by application of state-of-the-art analytical tools and modeling
approaches.
Conveners: Geraldine Sarthou (LEMAR, CNRS, Plouzané, France), Edward A Boyle
(Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Earth Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences,
Cambridge, MA), Gideon Mark Henderson (University of Oxford, Earth Sciences, Oxford,
United Kingdom), Micha J.A. Rijkenberg (Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research,
Den Burg, Netherlands)
The coastal carbon cycle: Understanding organic matter exchange and dynamics
across terrestrial-marine boundaries
Session ID#: 9264
Description: Transfer of carbon across the terrestrial-marine boundary and carbon
cycling within estuarine and coastal waters are important components of the global
carbon cycle. Yet carbon and its transformations in coastal environments remain poorly
characterized. Estuaries have complex physical drivers and geochemical gradients that
are coupled to watershed hydrology, tidal cycles, and extreme events (e.g., floods,
droughts). Understanding the interactions of organic carbon in these environments,
particularly in the context of global change, requires multiple observational approaches
for identifying sources and ages, exchange mechanisms, transport pathways, and
process time scales. We invite contributions that examine the dynamics of particulate
and dissolved organic carbon in estuarine and coastal systems and how those processes
mediate the transfer of carbon from land to sea and between the water column and
sedimentary environments. Possible topics include: transport of organic matter across
the terrestrial- marine interface, partitioning of organic matter between particulate and
aqueous phases, exchange between dissolved and particulate components, oxidation
and burial in sediments, linkages between organic matter dynamics and nutrient cycling,
response to seasonal variations and discharge perturbations, age determinations,
biomarker and isotopic studies, as well as modeling approaches to carbon dynamics.
Conveners: Elisabeth L Sikes (Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ), Elizabeth A Canuel
(Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Gloucester Point, VA), Tomoko Komada (San
Francisco State University, Romberg Tiburon Center, Tiburon, CA), Thomas S Bianchi
(University of Florida, Geological Sciences, Gainesville, FL)
Geological and Biogeochemical Dynamics in Major Deltaic Coasts
Session ID#: 9355
Wednesday, February 24, 2016, 222: 8-10 am, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
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Description: River deltas occupy only 5% of the Earth’s surface, but nourish over a half
billion people around the world. Deltas play a vital role in transferring water, sediment
and nutrients to the global coastal ocean. Many river deltas, however, are endangered
because of rising relative sea level and coastal erosion, leading to significant threats to
natural, economic and social systems. During the past half century, lots of deltas have
been impacted by human activities, such as levee construction, dam constructioninduced sediment decline, as well as fertilizer-induced coastal hypoxia. In this session
we encourage the submissions of the studies on geological processes, biogeochemical
processes and the interaction of two in dynamic major deltaic systems through the use
of field observations, numerical models, or laboratory experiments. We propose to
gather presentations that highlight recent findings on various aspects of deltaic
sciences, including coastal morphodynamics, sedimentary geology, sediment transport,
coastal restoration, biogeochemical cycles, as well as the linkages of water-column and
seabed processes. Studies on the Mississippi and Yangtze dispersal systems are
particularly encouraged, and the studies in other deltaic systems are certainly welcome.
Conveners: Kehui Xu (Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA), Thomas S Bianchi
(University of Florida, Geological Sciences, Gainesville, FL), Wei-Jun Cai (University of
Delaware, Newark, DE), Zhongyuan Chen (East China Normal University, State Key
Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research, Shanghai, China)
Ecosystem responses to climate variability in eastern boundary upwelling ecosystems
Session ID#: 9360
Thursday, February 25, 2016, RO5: 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: The ocean’s mid-latitude eastern boundary currents support elevated
levels of primary and secondary production that sustain lucrative fisheries and attract an
abundance of top predators. However, populations in these systems exhibit high
degrees of variability in productivity and/or distribution at interannual to multidecadal
time scales, challenging efforts to describe ecosystem health and develop effective
strategies of resource management. Coupling between physical and ecological
processes in eastern boundary current systems has stimulated multidisciplinary studies
that aim to better describe the sensitivity of biogeochemical properties and biological
communities to climate variability and climate change. Variability in the intensity,
spatial distribution, and seasonal timing of wind-driven upwelling, changes in vertical
stratification and mixing of the water column, differences in mesoscale and
submesoscale features, and changes in the biogeochemical properties of these regions’
deep source waters have been proposed as critical factors influencing temporal
variability in ecosystem conditions. In this session, we welcome presentations
highlighting work (observational, conceptual, and/or numerical) contributing to better
understanding of the dynamics of ecosystem response to climatic (both natural and
anthropogenic) and hydrographic changes in eastern boundary current upwelling
systems over interannual to centennial scales.
Conveners: Ryan R Rykaczewski (University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC), Marisol
Garcia Reyes (Farallon Institute, Petaluma, CA), Bryan Black (University of Texas at
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Austin, Port Aransas, TX), and Michael Jacox (NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center,
Environmental Research Division, Monterey, CA)
Coral Reef Calcification in a Changing Ocean: from Microscale Mechanisms to
Macroscale Responses
Session ID#: 9619
Monday, February 22, 2016, 206: 8-10 am, 10:30 am-12:30 pm, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6
pm
Description: Coral reefs support an estimated 500 million people worldwide. Yet
anthropogenic CO2 emissions are driving unprecedented changes in the tropical oceans,
where the vast majority of shallow water reefs exist. Rapid warming, acidification and
declining productivity will have potentially deleterious effects on calcification, the
fundamental process of reef building. However, quantitative projections of coral reef
futures are limited in part, by gaps in our understanding of the calcification process –
from the production of crystals to the building of reefs – and of the response of coral
and coral reef calcification to multiple, interactive global change stressors on timescales
of days to decades. This session invites contributions from biologists, marine chemists,
physical oceanographers, ecologists and geochemists to bring diverse expertise and new
perspectives to a subject of global significance. We encourage submissions from field,
laboratory, and theoretical studies that offer new insights into the fundamental
mechanisms of coral calcification and reef building, and the response of calcification to
global change at the cellular, colony and ecosystem scale. Paleoperspectives on
calcification responses to past global changes are encouraged as well as papers that
offer insights into potential for adaptation.
Conveners: Jessica Carilli (University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA), Weifu Guo,
(Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst., Woods Hole, MA), Anne L Cohen (Woods Hole
Oceanographic Inst, Woods Hole, MA), Steeve Comeau (California State University,
Northridge, Northridge, CA)
Linking 'Omics Insights to Marine Microbial Ecology and Biogeochemical Functioning
Session ID#: 9610
Thursday, February 25, 2016, RO4: 8-10 am, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Throughout history oceanography has explored science at the interface of
traditional disciplines. In recent years, cutting-edge 'omics techniques, trace nutrient
chemistry methods, and big data management are setting the stage for the next wave of
oceanographic insights that were not possible even a decade ago due to improvements
in resolution, detection limit, and computational power. This session will explore the
newest interdisciplinary insights into linking 'omics data with marine microbial ecology
and biogeochemical functioning. Thus, we encourage submissions on field, lab, and
modeling work cutting across chemistry, microbial physiology, ecology,
biogeochemistry, biogeography, and responses to global change. Presentations will
highlight studies that leverage, blend, or interpret 'omics data in novel, interdisciplinary
ways to inform pressing questions in marine biogeochemistry.
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Conveners: Katherine R Mackey (University of California Irvine, Earth System Science,
Irvine, CA), Adam Martiny (University of California, Irvine, Earth System Science, Irvine,
CA)
Physical and Biogeochemical Processes in the Southern Ocean: Observations, State
Estimation and Modeling
Session ID#: 9260
Monday, February 22, 2016, 211-213: 8-10 am, 10:30 am-12:30 pm, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall:
4-6 pm
Description: The Southern Ocean, south of 30°S, occupies just under one-third of the
surface ocean area, yet it accounts for a disproportionate share of the vertical exchange
of heat, carbon and nutrients between the deep ocean, the surface ocean and the
atmosphere. Understanding the physical and biogeochemical processes that determine
the Southern Ocean’s mean state, variability, and response to external forcing is critical
to our understanding of the climate system as a whole, and for reducing uncertainties in
climate projections. Recent advances in data collection, state estimation and modeling
capabilities have finally established the necessary infrastructure to permit a deeper
understanding of the Southern Ocean’s processes that are relevant to climate. Working
toward this goal, this session will present new results based on modeling and/or
observational efforts that investigate biogeochemical processes, large-scale and
mesoscale circulation, mixing, as well as ocean-atmosphere and ocean-ice interactions.
Conveners: Igor V Kamenkovich (RSMAS, Miami, FL), Joellen L Russell (University of
Arizona, Tucson, AZ), Stephen Riser (University of Washington Seattle Campus, Seattle,
WA), Ariane Verdy (Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC Sand Diego, La Jolla, CA)
Advancing Water Quality Monitoring and Forecasting in Urban Coastal and Inland
Waters
Session ID#: 9636
Wednesday, February 24, 2016, RO1: 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Water is an increasingly threatened resource, particularly the quality of
coastal and inland waters due to population growth, urbanization and climate
change. Further, the interfacial nature of the urban coastal zone, bridging aquatic,
terrestrial, atmospheric and anthropogenic domains, means they are significantly
impacted by dynamic and complex processes. Timely, accurate, and consistent
scientific-based assessments, monitoring and forecasting of water quality are crucial
across global, regional and local scales. This session solicits contributions addressing the
end-to-end value chain for urban coastal and inland water quality. This includes new
and improved physical, biogeochemical, and ecological observations and data (remote
and in situ), model output with data assimilation and forecasts, and synergistic
generation of fit for purpose water quality products and indicators to provide integrated
information for water quality managers and other stakeholders. In particular,
developmental and operational activities that couple products and indicators (from
observations, models etc.) across the land-water interface are solicited, as are
24
information delivery systems and decision making tools to enhance user
knowledge. This session advances goals and objectives of the international Water
Quality Summit held in 2015 by the Group for Earth Observations, particularly
development of urban water quality monitoring and forecasting service(s) in developed
and developing nations.
Conveners: Paul M DiGiacomo (NOAA/NESDIS/STAR, College Park, MD), Steve Ackleson
(Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC), Sujay Kaushal (University of Maryland,
College Park, MD), Menghua Wang (NOAA/NESDIS/STAR, College Park, MD)
Assessing the cumulative effects of complex ocean change on marine biota
Session ID#: 9494
Friday, February 26, 2016, 206: 8-10 am, 10:30 am-12:30 pm, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6
pm
Description: Oceanic conditions are changing at an unprecedented rate due to
anthropogenically-driven changes. Life in the ocean will increasingly have to contend
with a complex matrix of concurrent shifts in properties that set their physiology and
control their life histories. This matrix of change will have a combined influence on
marine biota, due to both the individual effects of altered properties such as warming,
but also due to the interactions between these properties. A further challenge to
studying the cumulative effects of anthropogenic change will be the identification of the
interactions of local, regional and global scales of such change. We invite abstracts to
this session from studies which highlight how this multiplicity of factors can be
addressed and will alter organismal physiology, biogeochemical cycles and/or foodwebs. Theoretical, experimental and modelling approaches are welcome.
Conveners: David Hutchins (University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA), Philip
Boyd (University of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia), Ulf Riebesell (GEOMAR Helmholtz
Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Kiel, Germany), J-P Gattuso (University Pierre and Marie
Curie Paris VI, Paris, France)
Ocean Circulation and Biogeochemistry in a Water Mass Framework
Session ID#: 9337
Monday, February 22, 2016, 228-230: 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Water masses are the phenomenological expression of large-scale
dynamical processes in the ocean, and for this reason have long been the foundation of
our characterization and understanding of large-scale ocean circulation. Recent and
ongoing advances have focused on dynamically-active tracers (e.g. density,
temperature, salinity and potential vorticity), as these lend themselves most directly to
characterizing the budgets of heat and freshwater and more generally the overturning
circulation. In addition a water mass framework is general, and can provide insight into
the dynamical and thermohaline controls on ocean biogeochemistry and the ocean
carbon cycle.
Recently significant attention has been devoted to water mass modification processes
(formation, erosion) occurring within the ocean interior, and connecting this to surface
transformations and the large-scale overturning circulation. Additional efforts have
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begun to consider this for the case of ocean biogeochemistry as the concepts of interior
ventilation and dynamical controls on preformed nutrients and carbon are intrinsically
linked to water mass formation processes in the ocean’s surface boundary layer.
This session welcomes studies that exploit in-situ and integrated observations, theory,
and numerical modeling-based analysis (both Eulerian and Lagrangian). Abstracts are
welcomed that focus on physical processes, biogeochemical processes and/or the
interplay between the two.
Conveners: Keith B Rodgers (Princeton University, Princeton, NJ), Daniele Iudicone
(Stazione Zooliga, Naples, Italy), Jan David Zika (University of Southampton,
Southampton, SO14, United Kingdom), Dafydd Gwyn Evans (University of Southampton,
Southampton, United Kingdom)
Scaling up microbial and foodweb processes to global biogeochemical fluxes
Session ID#: 9375
Description: Macroecology advocates the collection of large amounts of some “easily”
measured data at large spatial scales in order to examine relations between organisms
and their environment. Focus is given to pattern, scale, regionality and seasonality. In
the Arctic Ocean, the most striking physical changes are associated with diminishing sea
ice extent and thickness, resulting in a loss of an important interface between the ocean
and the atmosphere. Understanding the response of biogeochemical cycles and the
marine ecosystems to these changes requires the integration of physical, biological and
chemical oceanographic studies across a range of temporal and spatial scales. We
encourage submissions ranging from the micron scale (e.g., phytoplankton, ice algae
and bacteria) to the km scale (e.g., satellite pixels-from-space; spring and fall blooms)
and from turbulent bursting phenomena to decadal and longer time scales. We seek
interdisciplinary data and synthesis products that elucidate the current status of the
physical (i.e., ocean, sea ice, atmosphere) and biogeochemical processes, how
feedbacks and controls could change Arctic marine systems, as well as research on
complex systems and thresholds. We especially invite advances linking the hard-tomeasure biological distributions to the easier-to-measure physical conditions at large
spatial and long temporal scales.
Conveners: Carol Robinson (University of East Anglia, School of Environmental Sciences,
Norwich, United Kingdom), Pablo Serret (University of Vigo, Departamento de Ecología y
Biología animal, Vigo, Spain)
Coastal submesoscale processes: Physics, biogeochemistry, and their interactions
Session ID#: 9285
Monday, February 22, 2016, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Sub-mesoscale features in the ocean, frequently manifested as filaments,
fronts, and eddies, are characterized by both O(1) Rossby number and a horizontal scale
smaller than the internal Rossby radius of deformation. Sub-mesoscale processes are
important as they contribute to the vertical transport of oceanic tracers, mass, and
buoyancy and rectify the mixed layer structure and upper-ocean stratification. The
coastal ocean, where most anthropogenic activities take place, is especially sensitive to
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these processes. This session invites observational, theoretical, and numerical modeling
efforts associated with submesoscale processes in coastal environments and shelf seas
within the scope of the ocean physics, biogeochemistry, and their interactions.
Conveners: Sung Yong Kim (Korea Advanced Institute of Sciecne and Technology,
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Daejeon, South Korea), Hezi Gildor (Hebrew
University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel)
Macroecological Approaches to the Arctic Ocean System: Changes and Implications on
Biogeochemical Cycles
Session ID#: 9492
Wednesday, February 24, 2016, 217-219: 8-10 am, 2-4 pm Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Macroecology advocates the collection of large amounts of some “easily”
measured data at large spatial scales in order to examine relations between organisms
and their environment. Focus is given to pattern, scale, regionality and seasonality. In
the Arctic Ocean, the most striking physical changes are associated with diminishing sea
ice extent and thickness, resulting in a loss of an important interface between the ocean
and the atmosphere. Understanding the response of biogeochemical cycles and the
marine ecosystems to these changes requires the integration of physical, biological and
chemical oceanographic studies across a range of temporal and spatial scales. We
encourage submissions ranging from the micron scale (e.g., phytoplankton, ice algae
and bacteria) to the km scale (e.g., satellite pixels-from-space; spring and fall blooms)
and from turbulent bursting phenomena to decadal and longer time scales. We seek
interdisciplinary data and synthesis products that elucidate the current status of the
physical (i.e., ocean, sea ice, atmosphere) and biogeochemical processes, how
feedbacks and controls could change Arctic marine systems, as well as research on
complex systems and thresholds. We especially invite advances linking the hard-tomeasure biological distributions to the easier-to-measure physical conditions at large
spatial and long temporal scales.
Conveners: Ilka Peeken (Alfred-Wegener-Institut Helmholtz-Zentrum für Polar- und
Meeresforschung, Bremerhaven, Germany), Patricia Matrai (Bigelow Lab for Ocean
Sciences, East Boothbay, ME), Eddy Carmack (Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Institute of
Ocean Sciences, Sidney, BC, Canada), Maria Vernet (Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
La Jolla, CA)
Graduate Student Outreach: Students at the Interface of Their Ocean Science Career
Session ID: 9551
Description: Graduate students represent the interface of between education and the
workforce in ocean science, whether it be academia, research, education or other
related careers. In addition to intense hours in the lab and seemingly never-ending
fieldwork, many graduate students are also involved in education/outreach to broader
audiences. Graduate students are generally isolated with much of their collegiate
interaction being with their advisor, who may or may not encourage educational
outreach in addition to a strong focus on research during their graduate careers. This
session will be run for graduate student presenters with all graduate student co-chairs
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and aims to give students an opportunity to present any education and/or outreach
activities with which they are involved such as after-school programs, science fairs,
social media platforms, science cafes, etc. Any abstract to this session will not prohibit
the presenter(s) from also presenting in a research session.
Conveners: Hayley Schiebel (University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA), Lucy
Lockwood (University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA), Jack Payette (University of
Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA), Sarah Rosengard (Woods Hole Oceanographic
Inst., Woods Hole, MA)
Pacific Ocean anomalies of 2014-2015: Consequences for Marine Ecosystems
Session ID#: 9540
Thursday, February 25, 2016, RO3: 8-10 am, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Unusual atmospheric and ocean conditions existed across much of the
North Pacific in 2014 and early 2015, especially in middle to high latitudes. Sea surface
temperature anomalies reached >2.5º C in the central Gulf of Alaska (colloquially
referred to as ‘The Blob’); it has been suggested that these conditions are related to an
unusually strong and persistent pattern of elevated atmospheric pressure in the region,
the ‘Ridiculously Resilient Ridge’. In parts of the California Current System (CCS),
temperature anomalies exceeded 5º C. It is not clear whether the warming off the west
coast of North America is directly related to the high latitude anomalies, or is part of a
separate regional warming near the southern end of the CCS. Numerous biological
perturbations have been associated with the NE Pacific ocean/atmosphere anomalies,
including depressed Chl-a, geographic shifts of zooplankton and other taxa, reduced
biomass of some small pelagic fishes, increased pinniped strandings, altered breeding
success and survivorship of some seabirds, etc. This session invites contributions
pertaining to physical oceanographic and atmospheric conditions during 2014-2015, or
evidence for biological or biogeochemical responses. We encourage both observational
evidence and models representing the dynamical basis of the anomalous conditions and
ecosystem responses.
Conveners: Mark D Ohman (Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UCSD, La Jolla, CA),
Nathan J Mantua (NOAA La Jolla, La Jolla, CA), Nicholas A Bond (University of
Washington Seattle Campus, Seattle, WA), William J Sydeman (Farallon Institute,
Petaluma, CA)
Toward Mechanistic Understanding and Prediction of Abrupt Ecosystem Changes
Session ID#: 9521
Description: Ecosystems can experience abrupt changes in productivity, species
composition and trophic structure that can profoundly impact marine resources and
undermine resource management. Such changes often arise from shifts in multiple
ecosystem drivers (e.g., climate forcing, pollution, fishing, acidification) that are
integrated within complex communities. Dynamical systems theory has provided
fundamental insights into the nature and drivers of abrupt ecosystem change - including
potential early warning signals. However, greater process-level understanding of drivers
and mechanisms underlying abrupt ecosystem changes are essential for robust
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prediction. In this session, we invite observational and modeling studies elucidating the
processes and mechanisms underlying abrupt ecosystem changes.
Conveners: Charles A Stock (NOAA/GFDL, Princeton, NJ), Mark D Ohman (Scripps
Institution of Oceanography, UCSD, La Jolla, CA), J A Kleypas (National Center for
Atmospheric Research, Climate and Global Dynamics, Boulder, CO), Jameal Samhouri
(NOAA/Northwest Fisheries Science Center, Seattle, WA)
Interactions between the open ocean and marginal/coastal seas in a changing climate
Session ID#: 9638
Description: Climate changes affect physical and biogeochemical processes in both the
open ocean and marginal/coastal seas. Observations have shown that coastal waters in
some areas have experienced significant changes in the last several decades, such as
rises in water temperature, changes in coastal circulations and marine ecological
systems. Processes in the open ocean, such as gyres and overturning circulations, have
also been affected by changes in surface wind stress and buoyancy fluxes. Oceanic
processes in marginal/coastal seas and the open ocean are intimately linked through
processes that govern cross-shelf exchanges. Flows on shelves, for instance, are
influenced by oceanic gyres through boundary currents and eddy fluxes.
Marginal/coastal seas also exert their influences on open-ocean processes.
Thermohaline circulations in the deep open ocean, for example, are driven in part by
water-mass transformations in marginal/coastal seas. To assess and to predict oceanic
responses to climate changes, it is imperative to understand how the open ocean
interacts with marginal/coastal seas, and how such interactions are affected by climate
changes. This session provides a venue for sharing interdisciplinary studies that address
key linkages of physical and biogeochemical processes between the open ocean and
marginal/coastal seas under a changing climate.
Conveners: Lixin Wu (Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China), Xiaopei Lin (Ocean
University of China, Qingdao, China), Jiayan Yang (Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution, Woods Hole, MA)
From monsoons to mixing: coupled ocean-atmosphere processes and biogeochemical
response in the Indian Ocean
Session ID#: 7489
Thursday, February 25, 2016, 222: 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: The Indian Ocean is a unique semi-enclosed ocean basin whose dynamics
are forced by and coupled to the summer and winter South Asian Monsoons.
The feedback between the ocean and atmosphere influences regional to global weather
patterns and biological productivity, often with major societal impact. This session aims
to synthesize our understanding of the role of the oceans on the South Asian Monsoons
through observations, modeling, and theory. Topics of interest include upper ocean
processes, air-sea interaction, boundary currents, planetary waves, freshwater
dispersal, and mixing. We encourage presentations that characterize the upper ocean
structure and identify key processes that set the lateral and vertical temperaturesalinity distribution over a range of length and time scales. We also encourage
29
presentations on how all of these physical processes impact bio-optical, biogeochemical
and ecological responses, including fisheries and humans.
Conveners: Amit Tandon (University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth MA, United States),
Andrew Lucas (Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla CA, United States),
Debasis Sengupta (Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India), Raleigh Hood
(University of Maryland, Cambridge MD, United States)
Nitrogen at the Interface: The N-Cycle across Physical and Disciplinary Boundaries
Session ID#: 9274
Monday, February 22, 2016, 225-227: 8-10 am, 10:30 am-12:30 pm, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall:
4-6 pm
Description: Nitrogen availability is an important control on ecosystem dynamics in
marine realms, from oligotrophic gyres to eutrophic coastal waters. Assessing what
controls the rates and distribution of N-cycling processes is therefore of paramount
importance for linking nitrogen biogeochemistry to productivity and ecosystem
function. Physical interfaces in the ocean are locations where the biology and chemistry
of distinct water masses and sediments interact, and appear to be hotspots for Ncycling. This session highlights nitrogen biogeochemistry at aquatic interfaces, including
oxic-anoxic transition zones, eddies/fronts, estuaries, and coastal/upwelling regions.
Research on N-cycle processes from unique marine interfaces and gradients of any kind
is welcomed.
Furthermore, recent advances in our understanding of N-cycling have come from
increasingly diverse research fields, such as refined isotopic techniques, unique methods
for modeling biogeochemical rates, and novel microbial analyses. In addition to research
located at physical interfaces, this session seeks presentations at the “interface” of
traditional oceanographic methods. Primary consideration will be given to presentations
that incorporate techniques from multiple disciplines, including (but not limited to)
isotope geochemistry, microbial ecology, physical oceanography, and marine ecosystem
modeling. Therefore, this session will focus on integrating data and ideas across several
oceanographic disciplines to holistically understand N-cycling processes at marine
interfaces.
Conveners: Bradley Tolar (Stanford University, Earth System Science, Stanford, CA),
Andrew R Babbin (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Civil and Environmental
Engineering, Cambridge, MA), Carolyn Buchwald (Woods Hole Oceanographic
Institution, Marine Chemistry & Geochemistry, Woods Hole, MA), Julian Damashek
(Stanford University, Earth System Science, Stanford, CA)
Primary Production in the subsurface: mechanisms, key species, significance for export
and the marine biological carbon pump
Session ID#: 9342
Monday, February 22, 2016, 210: 8:45-9 am
Description: Our understanding of oceanic primary production and producers has been
dominated by sampling of the surface ocean (typically < 20m). Similarly, our knowledge
30
of global patterns of primary production has been led by ocean colour measurements
from satellite sensors that again, have surface bias. During the 20th Century there were
few systematic attempts to target the subsurface resulting in a gap dating back to
Schimper's pioneering use of closing nets on the 1898 Valdivia cruise. Over the past two
decades, however, a burgeoning suite of observations has highlighted the significance of
subsurface production. A range of mechanisms have been identified including the ability
to grow in low light in subsurface chlorophyll maxima, exploitation of mixing events at
the pycnocline/ nutricline, buoyancy regulation allowing the mining of deep nutrients.
Significantly, new research is also demonstrating that this subsurface production may be
of major significance for carbon export. Wit h clima te change driving increased ocean
stratification, these styles of subsurface production may become more significant so it is
timely to focus on them. This session will aim to bring together observation, theory and
modelling of the subsurface to synergistically improve understanding and to identify
new targets and priorities for research.
Conveners: Alan E S Kemp (University of Southampton, Southampton, SO14, United
Kingdom), Tracy A Villareal (The University of Texas at Austin, Port Aransas, TX)
Nutrient Enhanced Coastal Acidification and Hypoxia
Session ID#: 9379
Wednesday, February 24, 2016, 206: 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Thursday, February 25, 2016, 206: 8-10 am, 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Excessive nutrients often cause hypoxia through enhanced phytoplankton
production of organic matter that is exported to the bottom and consumed by microbial
respiration. The released CO2 during respiration further reduces the pH of already
acidified water due to atmospheric CO2 in a way that is more than additive. This is a
concern due to the deleterious effects of low pH and O2 on marine life. Yet, factors
regulating coastal acidification are not fully understood due to the complexity of coastal
systems. One complication is caused by benthic respiration which reduces O2 and pH,
but also generates alkalinity (via anaerobic processes), which buffers against rapid
changes in pH. The oxidation of reduced species could also reduce pH near the oxicanoxic boundary. These and other biogeochemical processes, along with stratification
and end-member mixing influence the occurrence and location of ecologically relevant
combinations of low pH and O2. However, the uncertainties around these processes
make the effectiveness of management efforts aimed at nutrient reductions to reduce
coastal acidification difficult to predict. This session invites presentations describing
observations and models that further understanding of and improve our ability to
predict how nutrients and other anthropogenic impacts contribute to coastal
acidification and hypoxia.
Conveners: John Lehrter (US EPA Gulf Ecology Division), Wei-Jun Cai (University of
Delaware), Jason Grear (US EPA Atlantic Ecology Division), Cheryl Brown (US EPA
Western Ecology Division)
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Advancing Discovery, Observation, and Process Studies Throughout the Ocean with
Robotic Technologies
Session ID#: 9629
Monday, February 22, 2016, RO4: 2-4 pm, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Description: Understanding ocean processes requires observations over a broad range
of temporal and spatial scales, and motivates using mobile platforms capable of
operating over these scales. Furthermore, an increased demand exists for platforms
that can collect co-registered data and samples throughout the vertical water column
including the seafloor and air-sea interface, thereby enabling us to understand coupling
between all ocean realms. While gliders and Lagrangian floats are used in most oceans,
except in ice-covered seas where results are rarer, their capabilities can be
complemented by other mobile assets. Examples include autonomous underwater
vehicles (AUVs) capable of short duration but sensor rich observations, as well as
emerging technologies -- e.g., long-range AUVs suitable for long-duration studies, hybrid
ROVs capable of providing high-resolution observation and intervention capabilities in
regions traditionally difficult to access, and ice-tethered profilers in the ice-covered
oceans. This session seeks to bring together scientists and technologists to (1) report
science successes with these platforms; (2) demonstrate emerging capabilities (e.g.,
sensing, sampling, platforms, communications, autonomy, long range navigation); and
(3) highlight challenges and opportunities for improved ocean
observations. Communications of field results with these systems are encouraged
including preliminary results of potentially high-impact systems and science.
Conveners: James C Kinsey (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Woods Hole, MA),
Carl Kaiser (Woods Hole Oceanographic Inst., Woods Hole, MA), Yanwu Zhang
(Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, Watsonville, CA), Antje Boetius (Alfred
Wegener Institute Helmholtz-Center for Polar and Marine Research Bremerhaven,
Bremerhaven, Germany)
Variability in Southern Ocean Productivity over Different Timescales
Session ID#: 9290
Thursday, February 25, 2016, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Friday, February 26, 2016, 215-216: 10:30 am-12:30 pm
Session Description: Southern Ocean productivity plays an important role in regulating
marine resources, ocean biogeochemistry and the global carbon cycle. Canonically,
variations in iron supply and demand are thought to regulate the variations in
phytoplankton productivity. However, via the actions of ocean physics, the Southern
Ocean also encounters substantial fluctuations across space and time in temperature,
sea ice and glacial ice dynamics and the availability of light and/or macro- and micronutrients. How these regulatory factors act individually and in combination to shape the
dynamics of biological activity across food webs in different Southern Ocean regions and
different timescales is not well understood. This hampers our ability to project with
confidence how future environmental change will affect this important ecosystem. In
particular we lack an understanding of how variations in the physical and/or
biogeochemical environment are underpinned and connected to the broader picture of
32
ecosystem structure, as well as wider biogeochemical feedbacks. We invite
presentations from field, laboratory, remote sensing, modelling and paleo studies that
seek to unravel the dynamics of the Southern Ocean marine ecosystem from a seasonal
or decadal or millenial scale viewpoint. Efforts to combine insights across disciplines and
scales from physics to biogeochemistry to ecosystems are actively encouraged.
Convener: Alessandro Tagliabue (University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69, United
Kingdom), Philip Boyd (University of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia), Eugene W Domack
(University of South Florida St. Petersburg, St Petersburg, FL), Amy Leventer (Colgate
University, Geology, Hamilton, NY)
Coastal Residents Perception of Seawater Desalination and Its Impacts on Coastal
Ecosystems
Wednesday, February 24, 2016, Poster Hall: 4-6 pm
Session Description: Sufficient freshwater supply is an increasing challenge for coastal
communities in California due reduced reliability of water from inland water sources
(e.g. Colorado River, Sierra Nevada) and groundwater sources resulting from changes in
weather patterns, recurring droughts, and saltwater intrusion. One option to increase
resilience of freshwater availability in coastal areas and to mitigate associated water
shortage impacts on coastal ecosystems and communities is an investment in new
infrastructure like desalination plants. Such an investment, however, is a difficult
decision due to uncertainty about drought duration and intensity, and insufficient
knowledge about potential negative impacts of desalination facilities on coastal
ecosystems and communities. A number of studies have examined biological impacts
associated with seawater desalination and brine discharge in coastal areas. What has
been lacking, however, is a systematic and scientifically grounded assessment of coastal
resident perceptions regarding seawater desalination plants and their potential impacts
on the local coastal ecosystems. Such information would be useful for education,
information and planning purposes. Our research addresses this knowledge gap. We
randomly surveyed a sample of residents in Carlsbad, California, where the first large
coastal seawater desalination plant in California has been built, to understand their
knowledge and attitudes towards seawater desalination plants. We assessed residents
(1) awareness of the plant and the discharge of brine and the information sources for
their knowledge, (2) knowledge about the characteristics of brine discharge and its
potential impacts on the coastal ecosystem and coastal activities, (3) attitudes towards
seawater desalination plants (support or oppose), (4) perception of negative and
positive outcomes from the new desalination plant, (5) the influence of sociodemographic characteristics, place attachment, frequency of ocean use, and
membership in an NGO on attitudes and knowledge.
Conveners: Nadine Heck (UC, Santa Cruz), Adina Paytan (UC, Santa Cruz), Donald Potts
(UC, Santa Cruz), Brent Haddad (UC, Santa Cruz)
TUTORIALS
Recognizing Ocean Deoxygenation as a Global Change Challenge
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Session ID#: 9535
Thursday, February 25, 2016, RO3: 3:00-3:30 pm
Description: Oxygen content of the ocean is naturally dynamic but is now declining due
to forcing from multiple sources, including the consequences of rising CO2 and
eutrophication. This phenomenon, called ocean deoxygenation, is a major but little
recognized manifestation of global change. The tutorial will address what drives oxygen
variation and how different sources in the open ocean, coastal waters and watersheds
interact to affect marine ecosystems. Such understanding is essential for development
of holistic monitoring, prediction, and management programs. Research on oxygen
stress in the ocean has largely followed two separate schools, one that addresses
eutrophication-induced hypoxia in coastal ecosystems and another that examines
naturally occurring oceanic hypoxic zones. I will show that as understanding of wholeocean function and climate change grows it becomes clear that these phenomena are
interconnected across many different interfaces (air/sea, coastal/open ocean,
seafloor/water) and also that effects in one system or region may influence another.
Hypoxia is also closely linked to warming, ocean acidification, overfishing, and other
aspects of global change. This talk will highlight the need for integrated deoxygenation
observation and research that connects watersheds, coasts and open seas, and that
addresses societal as well as scientific issues.
Convener: Lisa A Levin (University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA)
What Controls the Distribution of Dissolved Iron in the Ocean?
Session ID#: 9303
RO3: 3:30-4 pm
Description: Due to its role as a limiting nutrient in the Southern Ocean, the role for iron
in governing how ocean productivity influences wider biogeochemical cycling and
atmospheric carbon dioxide levels is well accepted. Around twenty years ago the first
compendium of dissolved iron observations was published, enabling initial insights into
the controls on its cycling and distribution. Today the number of compiled iron
observations stands in the tens of thousands and is growing further thanks to the efforts
of the GEOTRACES programme. In this tutorial I will review the new insights gained into
the controls on the oceanic iron distribution that illuminates important roles for a range
of sources and identifies crucial components of its biological cycling. These emerging
ideas place important constraints on our efforts to represent the iron cycle in the global
ocean models used for integrating to basin and global scales, as well as climate
prediction. In this context I will discuss how the role for iron in controlling past
atmospheric carbon dioxide and future ocean productivity has matured. Finally, I will
highlight the key challenges that need to be tackled over the coming years, with an
emphasis on the opportunities provided by additional observational constraints.
Convener: Alessandro Tagliabue (University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69, United
Kingdom)
TOWN HALL MEETINGS
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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2016
12:45 PM - 1:45 PM
Toward a Standard, User-Friendly Chemical Speciation Model for Seawater and
Estuarine Waters - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 228-230
CLIVAR—Climate and Ocean: The Next 10 Years of CLIVAR Science as Part of the World
Climate Research Programme - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 225-227
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
The 2017–2027 National Academy of Sciences Decadal Survey for Earth Science and
Applications from Space - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 217-219
PACE: NASA's Next Generation Ocean Color Satellite Mission Town Hall - Ernest N.
Morial Convention Center 220-221
Discussion on the Future of Ocean Models in the U.S. - Ernest N. Morial Convention
Center 203-205
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2016
12:45 PM - 1:45 PM
Utilizing Online Streaming Data from the National Science Foundation's Ocean
Observatories Initiative - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center
220-221
Benefits and Challenges of Diurnal (Hourly) Ocean Color Remote Sensing: Science and
Applications - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 225-227
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
National Science Foundation Division of Ocean Sciences Town Hall - Ernest N. Morial
Convention Center 217-219
Implementing Basin Scale In Situ Ocean Observing Systems (OOS): Enhancing the
Efficiency and Overall Information Content of Integrated OOS for the Atlantic (EU
Project AtlantOS), the Southern Ocean (SOOS, OOI, SOCCOM), the Pacific (TPOS2020),
the Pan-Arctic (SAON), and the Indic (IndOOS) - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 211213
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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2016
12:45 PM - 1:45 PM
Southern Ocean Town Hall: SOCCOM and Other Progress - Ernest N. Morial Convention
Center 225-227
Exploring Ocean Indicators: Coordinating Efforts to Better Study, Monitor, and Predict
Ocean States, Changes, and Processes - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 217-219
The European Union-Canada-United States of America Atlantic Ocean Research Alliance:
Implementing the Galway Statement—Progress, Next Steps, and Opportunities for
Collaboration - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 228-230
Smithsonian's MarineGEO: A Global, Collaborative Network to Document Change in
Coastal Marine Biodiversity and Its Role in Ecosystem Resilience - Ernest N. Morial
Convention Center 220-221
A holistic discussion on the impacts of seawater desalination on the marine
environment: research, monitoring and the connection to plant operation - Ernest N.
Morial Convention Center 211-213
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
The Future of Biogeochemical Ocean Time Series - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center
225-227
Update and Status of the Arctic-COLORS (Arctic-COastal Land Ocean interactions) NASA
Field Campaign Scoping Study - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 217-219
What’s Right and What’s Wrong with Graduate Education in the Ocean Sciences? Ernest
N. Morial Convention Center 211-213
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2016
12:45 PM - 1:45 PM
EarthCube's Oceanography and Geobiology Environmental 'Omics (ECOGEO) Research
Coordination Network: A Community Focused on Identifying Technical Challenges and
Developing Plans for Federated Cyberinfrastructure that Will Enable Ocean and
Geobiology Environmental 'Omics Research - Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 217219
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Sustaining Ocean Observations to Understand Earth's Climate - Ernest N. Morial
Convention Center 220-221
GO-SHIP Update of the Current Decadal (2012–2023) Hydrographic Survey and Activities
- Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 228-230
Defining Priorities for NASA in Ocean Ecology and Biogeochemistry: 2017–2027 - Ernest
N. Morial Convention Center 211-213
Launch of the Second International Indian Ocean Expedition (IIOE-2) - Ernest N. Morial
Convention Center 225-227
6:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Opportunities to Strengthen Your Science (and Proposals) using GEOTRACES Data Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 228-230
Ocean Sciences in the Sixth Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6) - Ernest N.
Morial Convention Center 225-227
Essential Ocean Variables: A Common Focus for Sustained Global Ocean Observing Ernest N. Morial Convention Center 220-221
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