Coastal upwelling and downwelling events in the Seto Inland Sea

Prominent coastal upwelling and downwelling events due to Ekman transport were observed during the period from 14 to 18 August 1983 along the Misaki Peninsula in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan. The coastline of the Misaki Peninsula is aligned approximately in an ENE-WSW direction. When an ENE wind continued blowing for about two days, the warm water in the upper layer was pushed offshore and cold water in the lower layer upwelled along the peninsula. The estimated upwelling speed 3 m below the sea surface was 0.032 cm sec^–1. On the other hand, when a WSW wind continued blowing for about two days the warm water in the upper layer sank into the lower layer along the peninsula. The estimated downwelling speed 3 m below the sea surface was 0.080 cm sec^–1. The time lag between the variations of the alongshore wind and offshore current was about 0.5 days.     

Coastal phytoplankton blooms in the Southern California Bight

Surface chlorophyll (CHL) measured at the Scripps Pier in the Southern California Bight (SCB) for 18 years (1983–2000) reveals that the spring bloom occurs with irregular timing and intensity each year, unlike sea-surface temperature (SST), which is dominated by a regular seasonal cycle. In the 1990s, the spring bloom occurred earlier in the year and with larger amplitudes compared to those of the 1980s. Seasonal anomalies of the Pier CHL have no significant correlation with local winds, local SST, or upwelling index, which implies that classical coastal upwelling is not directly responsible for driving chlorophyll variations in nearshore SCB.The annual mean Pier CHL exhibits an increasing trend, whereas the Pier SST has no evident concomitant trend during the CHL observation period. The interannual variation of the Pier CHL is not correlated with tropical El Niño or La Niña conditions over the entire observing period. However, the Pier CHL was significantly influenced by El Nino/Southern Oscillation during the 1997/1998 El Niño and 1998/1999 La Niña transition period. The Pier CHL is highly coherent at long periods (3–7 years) with nearby offshore in situ surface CHL at the CalCOFI (California Cooperative Fisheries Investigations) station 93.27.     

Poleward shift of the coastal upwelling region off the California coast

Yoshida (1967) pointed out that the coastal upwelling region may not coincide with the intense longshore wind region and shift poleward. In order to clarify this poleward shift from the existing data, the monthly mean distributions of the offshore Ekman transport and the coastal upwelling intensity are estimated along the California coast from U. S. Daily Weather Maps and from the CCOFI data in 1949, respectively. The results show that the center of the coastal upwelling region is generally shifted to the north from the position of the maximum offshore Ekman transport. The detailed discussions are given for the case of August 1949 when the shift is seen most clearly.     

An offshore eddy in the California current system part II: Surface manifestation

Ship and satellite observations taken over the last thirty years show that mesoscale patterns of sea surface temperature (SST) in the California Current System are consistently found throughout the year and usually occur in approximately the same geographical locations. Typically, these patterns are more pronounced in fall/winter than in spring/summer. The temporal and spatial characteristics of these persistent feature were examined with satellite infrared (IR) measurements during winter 1980–1981. In January 1981, a ship surveyed the vertical structure of several physical, chemical, and biological parameters beneath one of these SST features centered near 32°N, 124°W. The surface IR pattern had a length scale of 200 km and a time scale of about 100 days. It disintegrated following the first two storms of the winter season. Motion studies of the pattern in late October indicated an anticyclonic rotation with maximum velocities of 50 cm s^?1 at 50 km from the axis of rotation. As a unit, the pattern advected southward with an average speed of 1 cm s^?1. Thermal fronts, determined from the satellite imagery, were strongest (0.4°C km^?1) along the rim of the pattern and were advected anticyclonically with the pattern; their length scales were 20–30 km in the along-front direction and less than 10 km wide. The hydrographic data revealed a three-layer structure beneath the surface pattern; a 75 m deep surface layer, a cold-core region from 75 to 200 m depth, and a warm-core eddy extending from 250 to 1450 m. The anticyclonic motion of the surface layer was caused by a geostrophic adjustment to the surface dynamic height anomaly produced by the subsurface warm-core eddy. The IR pattern observed from space reflects the horizontal structure of the surface layer and is consistent with a theoretical model of a mean horizontal SST gradient perturbed by a subsurface density anomaly. Ship of opportunity SST observations collected by the National Marine Fisheries are shown to resolve mesoscale patterns. For December 1980, the SST pattern near 32°N, 124°W represented a 2°C warm anomaly compared with the 20-year mean monthly SST pattern.     

An offshore eddy in the California current system Part IV: Plankton distributions

The distribution of plankton across a warm-core eddy system in the California Current 400 km off Point Conception, California was studied in January 1981. The eddy system, about 150 km in diameter at the 7°C isotherm, was made up of a 75 m thick surface layer, a cold-core region extending from 75 m to about 200 m, and a warm-core eddy below 200 m extending to at least 1450 m. Casts for the vertical distribution of chlorophyll/phaeophytin and integrating zooplankton net tows were taken at 37 stations located about 20 km apart on two orthogonal transects across the eddy system. Vertical distributions of microplankton were determined on one section from the eddy center to beyond the eastern edge. Integrated chlorophyll/phaeophytin values were highest to the north and east of the eddy system; across the system itself, there was only a small increase of values near the center. Asymmetrical distributions of maximum concen Current water was being entrained into the center of the eddy system from the northeast. Dinoflagellates were numerically the most important member of the microplankton, especially in the deep chlorophyll maximum. Zooplankton distributions indicated the intermingling of warm and cool water species throughout at least the upper 200 m of the eddy system. Some cold water species were as abundant inside the system as outside to the north and east; their numbers were much reduced in a band surrounding the system where warm water species were most abundant. The presence of species characteristic of different water types throughout the region of the eddy system provides an indication of the mixing that had occurred since the system originally formed. The biological data, together with the physical and chemical results, indicate the importance of frontal boundary processes and lateral entrainment of surrounding water into the eddy system in determining the character and productivity of such systems.     

An offshore eddy in the California current system Part I: Interior dynamics

From January 9 to 17, 1981, detailed observations of the horizontal and vertical structure beneath one of the quasi-permanent semi-stationary mesoscale offshore eddy signatures in the California Current System (CCS) discussed by Bernstein, Breaker and Whritner (1977), Burkov and Pavlova (1980), and Simpson (1982) were made. The vertical sections of temperature and density show the presence of three-layer system. A subsurface warm-core eddy, whose diameter is about 150 km at the 7°C isotherm, is the dominant feature. A warm surface layer, which extends to a depth of 75 m, lies over the eddy. Between the warm surface layer and the subsurface warm-core eddy, there is a cold-core region which extends to a depth of about 200 m. There is a high degree of symmetry about the vertical axis of rotation. Vertical sections of salinity and dissolved oxygen are entirely different from sections of temperature and density. Diagrams of water mass characteristics confirm that the core of the eddy, found between 250–600 m, consists of inshore water from the California Undercurrent (CU). Below about 700 m, local waters from the Deep Poleward Flow (DPF) have been incorporated into the eddy. The observed distributions of properties (T, S, δ_θ, O₂) are inconsistent with a single, local generation process for the eddy system. Radial distributions of angular velocity, normalized gradient velocity and relative vorticity support the use of a Gaussian radial height field as an initial condition in eddy models. Possible reasons why CCS eddies may differ dynamically from Gulf Stream rings are given in the text. At the time the observations were made, the system as a whole was in near geostrophic balance. Local geostrophic balance, however, cannot explain the observed distribution of properties and structure. The observed symmetry in the structure of the eddy system, chemical evidence (Simpson, 1984), biological distributions (Haury, 1984) and satellite images of the CC (Koblinsky, Simpson and Dickey, 1984) suggest that lateral entrainment of warm (oceanic) and cold (coastal) water into the upper two layers of the three-layer system by the subsurface eddy is a likely generation mechanism for the cold-core region. The coastal origin of the frontal structure along the northeastern quadrant and the oceanic origin of the frontal structure along the southwestern quadrant of the eddy system further support lateral entrainment as a generation mechanism for the cold core. This entrainment makes the CCS eddy system different from cold-core rings in the Gulf Stream and rather similar to some warm-core eddies found in the East Australian Current. The presence of CU water in the core of this eddy raises the question of how CU water was transported from the continental slope. Eddy generation mechanisms, other than baroclinic instability of the CC, may be required to explain the distribution, persistence, and core composition of offshore mesoscale eddies in the CCS. There is evidence that barotropic, in addition to baroclinic, processes may be important.     

An offshore eddy in the California current system part III: Chemical structure

From January 9 to 17, 1981, detailed physical, chemical and biological measurements were made through the historical surface signature (Berstein, Breaker and Whritner, 1977; Burkov and Pavlova, 1980; Simpson, 1982) of a warm-core eddy in the California Current System. The data show a three-layer system: surface layer to 75 m, intermediate cold-core region to about 200 m, and the physically dominant subsurface warm-core eddy to about 1400 m. The chemical structure simultaneously possesses characteristics of both warm- and cold-core eddies. This structure results from a complex interplay among non-local eddy generation processes at the time the three-layer system was formed and a continuous set of interactions within the three-layer system, both inshore (cold) and offshore (warm) waters of the California Current and coastal and local biological processes (e.g. this California Current System eddy is $\text{not}$ an isolated structure like some Gulf Stream rings). The dominant biological/chemical process in the euphotic zone is phytoplankton photosynthesis; photosynthetic alteration of the chemical structure below 100 m is much reduced. The effects of heterotrophic activity on the deeper-lying chemical structure, however are not as significant as those of autotrophs on the chemical structure of the euphotic zone. Hence, below 100 m, the distribution and structure of chemical properties is controlled primarily by physical processes. The continuous set of interactions of the three-layer system with coastal and oceanic waters of the California Current make this offshore eddy in the California Current System fundamentally different chemically and biologically from cold-core Gulf Stream rings and rather similar to some of the warm-core eddies found in the East Australian Current.     

Microheterotrophic pathways in the southern Benguela upwelling system

During the 1980s, there was a major shift in the understanding of the structure of marine foodwebs. As a result, the microbial loop has been incorporated into the classical concept of the planktonic food chain. Heterotrophic bacteria and Protozoa have been shown to be important components of the plankton biomass in many parts of the world's oceans, and their role in the trophic dynamics of pelagic foodwebs has been studied intensively. In the southern Benguela, field, laboratory and modelling studies have been combined to calculate carbon and nitrogen fluxes through the microheterotrophic portion of the pelagic foodweb. A size-based simulation model incorporating recent hypotheses on the structure and functioning of the pelagic foodweb after upwelling predicts rapid growth of a phytoplankton community dominated by netphytoplankton and chain-forming nanophytoplankton cells. After nitrate-depletion the bloom declines, to be followed by a bloom of single nanophytoplankton cells dependent upon regenerated nitrogen. During conditions of high nitrate availability and a netphytoplankton-dominated community, mesozooplankton ingest 44 per cent of the total primary production through herbivory and 1,4 per cent through carnivory. During periods of low nitrate availability and a nanophytoplankton-dominated community, mesozooplankton ingest 0,6 per cent of the total primary production through herbivory and 5 per cent through carnivory. Food chains are longer and microheterotrophs are an important link between primary producers and the larger heterotrophs. Simulation results show that microheterotrophs are an important component of the pelagic foodweb, primarily as regenerators of nitrogen, which sustains phytoplankton growth, and as a food source for larger heterotrophs of the metazoan foodweb during the nanophytoplankton-dominated bloom.     

Effects of upwelling,tides and biological processes on the inorganic carbon system of a coastal lagoon in Baja California

The role of coastal lagoons and estuaries as sources or sinks of inorganic carbon in upwelling areas has not been fully understood. During the months of May–July, 2005, we studied the dissolved inorganic carbon system in a coastal lagoon of northwestern Mexico during the strongest period of upwelling events. Along the bay, different scenarios were observed for the distributions of pH, dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and apparent oxygen utilization (AOU) as a result of different combinations of upwelling intensity and tidal amplitude. DIC concentrations in the outer part of the bay were controlled by mixing processes. At the inner part of the bay DIC was as low as 1800 μmol kg⁻¹, most likely due to high water residence times and seagrass CO₂ uptake. It is estimated that 85% of San Quintín Bay, at the oceanic end, acted as a source of CO₂ to the atmosphere due to the inflow of CO₂-rich upwelled waters from the neighboring ocean with high positive fluxes higher than 30 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹. In contrast, there was a net uptake of CO₂ and HCO₃⁻ by the seagrass bed Zostera marina in the inner part of the bay, so the pCO₂ in this zone was below the equilibrium value and slightly negative CO₂ fluxes of −6 mmol C m⁻² d⁻¹. Our positive NEP and ΔDIC values indicate that Bahía San Quintín was a net autotrophic system during the upwelling season during 2005.     

Bio-optical signatures and biogeochemistry from intense upwelling and relaxation in coastal California

The NSF-sponsored Coastal Ocean Processes Wind Events and Shelf Transport (WEST) experiment investigates the interplay between wind-driven transport and shelf productivity; while eastern boundary shelves are characterized by high productivity due to upward fluxes of nutrients into the euphotic zone, wind forcing also represents negative physical and biological controls via offshore transport and deep (light-limiting) mixing of primary producers. Although this interaction has been well documented for eastern boundary systems generally and for California specifically, one of the primary goals of WEST was to characterize more fully the interplay between positive and negative effects of wind stress, which result in the consistently elevated biological productivity in these shelf regions. During 3 month-long summer cruises (2000–2002) we observed extremes in upwelling/relaxation, using both in situ instrumentation and remotely sensed data. Relationships between optical and physical properties were examined, with emphasis on biogeochemical implications. During 2000, the WEST region was optically dominated by phytoplankton and covarying constituents. During 2001 and 2002, periods of more intense upwelling favorable winds, we observed a transition to optical properties dominated by detrital and inorganic materials. In all years, the continental shelf break provided a natural boundary between optically distinct shelf and open ocean waters. During 2002, we obtained discrete trace-metal measurements of particulate iron and aluminum; we develop a bio-optical proxy for acetic-acid leachable iron from backscatter and fluorescence, and demonstrate that particulate iron is not well correlated to traditional upwelling proxies such as macronutrients, temperature, and salinity. We conclude that the shelf break between ca. 100 and 200 m water depth serves as a natural break point between coastal and oceanic water masses in this region, and that the elevated biomass and productivity associated with this eastern boundary current regime is dominated by these iron rich, shallow shelf waters.     

Surface boundary-layer variability off Northern California, USA, during upwelling

A five-element mooring array is used to study surface boundary-layer transport over the Northern California shelf from May to August 2001. In this region, upwelling favorable winds increase in strength offshore, leading to a strong positive wind stress curl. We examine the cross-shelf variation in surface Ekman transport calculated from the wind stress and the actual surface boundary-layer transport estimated from oceanic observations. The two quantities are highly correlated with a regression slope near one. Both the Ekman transport and surface boundary layer transport imply curl-driven upwelling rates of about 3×10⁻⁴ m s⁻¹ between the 40 and 90 m isobaths (1.5 and 11.0 km from the coast, respectively) and curl-driven upwelling rates about 1.5×10⁻⁴m s⁻¹ between the 90 and 130 m isobaths (11.0 and 28.4 km from the coast, respectively). Thus curl-driven upwelling extends to at least 25 km from the coast. In contrast, upwelling driven by the adjustment to the coastal boundary condition occurs primarily inshore of the 40-m isobath. The upwelling rates implied by the differentiating the 40-m transport observations with the coastal boundary condition are up to 8×10⁻⁴ m s⁻¹. The estimated upwelling rates and the temperature–nitrate relationship imply curl-driven vertical nitrate flux divergences are about half of those driven by coastal boundary upwelling.     

Coastal upwelling in the Gelendzhik area of the Black Sea: Effect of wind and dynamics

Long series data of a thermistor chain in the Black Sea coastal zone near Gelendzhik were analyzed. A thermistor chain installed 1 km offshore and at a depth of 22 m. There are full and incomplete upwelling events observed. The study of upwelling genesis based on: wind speed data from the NCEP/CFSR reanalysis and Gelendzhik weather station, velocity and direction of coastal currents measured by ADCP profiler moored on the bottom near the thermistor chain. Over the whole observation period (warm seasons of 2013–2015), more than 40 events of upwelling were registered four of them were full upwellings, when presence of under-thermocline water was observed near the sea surface. For every upwelling event, conditions prior to the changes in thermic structure, were analyzed. It is found that full upwelling generally occur under synergistic wind and current forcing. Fairly strong forcing of one of these factors is sufficient for partial upwelling to occur.     

Nutrient controls on new production in the Bodega Bay, California, coastal upwelling plume

A theoretical framework for the time-dependent processes leading to the high rates of new production in eastern boundary upwelling systems has been assembled from a series of past upwelling studies. As part of the CoOP WEST (Wind Events and Shelf Transport) study, new production in the Bodega Bay upwelling area and it's control by ambient nitrate and ammonium concentrations and the advective wind regime are described. Data and analyses are focused primarily on the WEST 2001 cruise (May–June 2001) when the two legs differed greatly in wind regimes but not nutrient concentrations. Elevated concentrations of ammonium in upwelled water with high nitrate were observed in both legs. Nitrate uptake by phytoplankton as a function of nitrate concentration was linear rather than Michaelis–Menten-like, modulated by inhibitory levels of ammonium, yielding coefficients that enable the specific nitrate uptake element of new production to be estimated from nutrient concentrations. The range of specific nitrate uptake rates for the two legs of WEST 2001 were similar, essentially a physiological response to nutrient conditions. However, the low “realization” of new production i.e. incorporation of biomass as particulate nitrogen that occurred in this system compared to the theoretical maximum possible was determined by the strong advective and turbulent conditions that dominated the second leg of the WEST 2001 study. These data are compared with other upwelling areas using a physiological shift-up model [Dugdale, R.C., Wilkerson, F.P., Morel, A. 1990. Realization of new production in coastal upwelling areas: a means to compare relative performance. Limnology and Oceanography 35, 822–829].     

Nutrient variability during El Niño 1997–98 in the California current system off central California

Nutrient conditions off central California during the 1997–98 El Niño are described. Data were collected on 11 cruises from March 1997 to January 1999 along a hydrographic section off central California, as well as every two weeks at a coastal station in Monterey Bay. Perturbations associated with El Niño are shown as anomalies of thermohaline and nutrient distributions along this section. The anomalies were obtained by subtracting seasonal averages for the period from April 1988 to April 1991 from the 1997–98 observations. The first indications of El Niño conditions (high sea levels) were observed at Monterey between late May and early June 1997, but the coastal nutricline did not begin to deepen until August 1997. It reached maximum depth of 130 dbar in January 1998 at the time that maximum sea level anomalies were observed. During this period: (1) the highest subsurface temperature anomalies coincided with subsurface nutrient anomaly minima at the depth of the pycnocline; (2) southern saline and nutrient-poor waters occupied the upper 80 dbar of the water column along the entire section; and (3) nitrate levels were close to zero in the euphotic zone, collapsing the potential new primary production in the coastal domain. At the end of February 1998, the nutricline shoaled to 40 dbar at the coast although it remained anomalously deep offshore. Higher temperatures and lower nutrient levels were observed for the entire section through August 1998 although in contrast with the previous winter, there was a strong freshening mainly due to an onshore movement of subarctic waters.     

Cross-shelf distribution of copepods and the role of event-scale winds in a northern California upwelling zone

Cross-shelf distribution and abundance of copepod nauplii and copepodids were measured during three summer upwelling seasons (2000–2002) in a coastal upwelling zone off northern California. These 3 years varied considerably in the intensity of winds, abundance of chlorophyll, and water temperature. The cruises in 2000 were characterized by relaxation conditions, with generally high levels of chlorophyll and high water temperature. The cruises in 2001 and 2002 were dominated by strong and persistent upwelling events, leading to lower chlorophyll and water temperatures. The copepod assemblage was dominated by Oithona spp., Acartia spp. and Pseudocalanus spp., with Metridia pacifica (lucens), Microsetella rosea, Oncaea spp. and Tortanus discaudatus also common during all 3 years. The cross-shelf distribution of copepods was generally shifted offshore during upwelling and onshore during relaxation events, although some variability between species occurred. Abundance of all life stages generally exhibited a negative correlation with cross-shelf transport averaged over at least 1–4 days and lagged by 0–3 days, indicating lower abundances during and immediately after active upwelling. However, copepod nauplii seemed to respond positively to wind events lasting 1–5 days followed by a period of relaxation lasting 6 or 7 days. These rapid rates of change in abundance are probably too great to be due to in situ growth and reproduction alone; physical processes must also play a role. These results suggest a highly dynamic relationship between copepods and upwelling events off northern California, with species-specific responses to upwelling to be expected.     

Coastal upwelling events along the southern coast of Java during the 2008 positive Indian Ocean Dipole

To understand the coastal upwelling system along the southern coast of Java, we investigated ocean temperature and salinity obtained from an Argo float. In 2008, a positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) event began to develop in early May and anomalously cool SST developed around south of Java from May to September. During the peak of the IOD, an Argo float successfully observed vertical structure of temperature and salinity within 90 km from Java. The float observed two intraseasonal-scale temperature cooling events in July and August, with significant upward movements of the thermocline more than 90 m. Concurrent with the signals, anomalous southeasterly alongshore winds, lowering of local SST and sea level, and upward expansion of high-salinity water were also observed. During the event in August, vertical velocity estimated by the anomalous wind stress agreed well with the observations. These results indicate that the Argo float observed the coastal upwelling, which was enhanced by the 2008 positive IOD, along the southern coast of Java.