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Measured and remotely sensed estimates of primary production in the Atlantic Ocean from 1998 to 2005

Measured and remotely sensed estimates of primary production in the Atlantic Ocean from 1998 to 2005
Measured and remotely sensed estimates of primary production in the Atlantic Ocean from 1998 to 2005
Primary production (PP) was determined using 14C uptake at 117 stations in the Atlantic Ocean to validate three PP satellite algorithms of varying complexity. An empirical satellite algorithm based on log chlorophyll-a had the highest bias and root-mean square error compared with measured 14C PP and tended to under-estimate PP. The vertical generalised production model improved PP estimates and was the most accurate algorithm in the Eastern Tropical Atlantic (ETRA) and Western Tropical Atlantic (WTRA), but tended to over-estimate PP in eutrophic provinces. A photosynthesis-light wavelength-resolved model was the most accurate over the Atlantic basin, having the lowest mean log-difference error, root-mean square error and bias, and exhibited a superior performance in six out of the nine ecological provinces surveyed. Using this algorithm and mean monthly SeaWiFS fields, a PP time series was generated for the Atlantic Ocean from 1998 to 2005 which was compared with Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) sea-surface temperature (SST) data. There was a significant negative correlation between SST and PP in the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre Province (NAST), North Atlantic Tropical Gyre (NATR), and WTRA suggesting that recent warming trends in these provinces are coupled with a decrease in phytoplankton production.

Phytoplankton, Photosynthesis, Primary production, Atlantic Ocean, Satellite oceanography, Remote sensing
0967-0645
918-930
Tilstone, Gavin
b48d90ea-3039-4f2a-a1a5-967e1109bf4d
Smyth, Timothy
5306fcd4-b5c3-476c-9144-6078165ee262
Poulton, Alex
14bf64a7-d617-4913-b882-e8495543e717
Hutson, Rory
049e900c-d400-4fef-97b5-5af84e592118
Tilstone, Gavin
b48d90ea-3039-4f2a-a1a5-967e1109bf4d
Smyth, Timothy
5306fcd4-b5c3-476c-9144-6078165ee262
Poulton, Alex
14bf64a7-d617-4913-b882-e8495543e717
Hutson, Rory
049e900c-d400-4fef-97b5-5af84e592118

Tilstone, Gavin, Smyth, Timothy, Poulton, Alex and Hutson, Rory (2009) Measured and remotely sensed estimates of primary production in the Atlantic Ocean from 1998 to 2005. Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography, 56 (15), 918-930. (doi:10.1016/j.dsr2.2008.10.034).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Primary production (PP) was determined using 14C uptake at 117 stations in the Atlantic Ocean to validate three PP satellite algorithms of varying complexity. An empirical satellite algorithm based on log chlorophyll-a had the highest bias and root-mean square error compared with measured 14C PP and tended to under-estimate PP. The vertical generalised production model improved PP estimates and was the most accurate algorithm in the Eastern Tropical Atlantic (ETRA) and Western Tropical Atlantic (WTRA), but tended to over-estimate PP in eutrophic provinces. A photosynthesis-light wavelength-resolved model was the most accurate over the Atlantic basin, having the lowest mean log-difference error, root-mean square error and bias, and exhibited a superior performance in six out of the nine ecological provinces surveyed. Using this algorithm and mean monthly SeaWiFS fields, a PP time series was generated for the Atlantic Ocean from 1998 to 2005 which was compared with Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) sea-surface temperature (SST) data. There was a significant negative correlation between SST and PP in the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre Province (NAST), North Atlantic Tropical Gyre (NATR), and WTRA suggesting that recent warming trends in these provinces are coupled with a decrease in phytoplankton production.

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More information

Published date: 1 July 2009
Keywords: Phytoplankton, Photosynthesis, Primary production, Atlantic Ocean, Satellite oceanography, Remote sensing

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 66836
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/66836
ISSN: 0967-0645
PURE UUID: cead372e-c36a-4545-9254-35bd55bbddcf

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 24 Jul 2009
Last modified: 13 Mar 2024 18:37

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Contributors

Author: Gavin Tilstone
Author: Timothy Smyth
Author: Alex Poulton
Author: Rory Hutson

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