Climate-driven basin-scale decadal oscillations of oceanic phytoplankton

Phytoplankton—the microalgae that populate the upper lit layers of the ocean—fuel the oceanic food web and affect oceanic and atmospheric carbon dioxide levels through photosynthetic carbon fixation. Here, we show that multidecadal changes in global phytoplankton abundances are related to basin-scal...

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Main Authors: Martinez, E., Antoine, David, D’Ortenzio, F., Gentili, B.
Format: Journal Article
Published: The American Association for the Advancement of Science 2009
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/31123
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author Martinez, E.
Antoine, David
D’Ortenzio, F.
Gentili, B.
author_facet Martinez, E.
Antoine, David
D’Ortenzio, F.
Gentili, B.
author_sort Martinez, E.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Phytoplankton—the microalgae that populate the upper lit layers of the ocean—fuel the oceanic food web and affect oceanic and atmospheric carbon dioxide levels through photosynthetic carbon fixation. Here, we show that multidecadal changes in global phytoplankton abundances are related to basin-scale oscillations of the physical ocean, specifically the Pacific Decadal Oscillation and the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation. This relationship is revealed in ~20 years of satellite observations of chlorophyll and sea surface temperature. Interaction between the main pycnocline and the upper ocean seasonal mixed layer is one mechanism behind this correlation. Our findings provide a context for the interpretation of contemporary changes in global phytoplankton and should improve predictions of their future evolution with climate change.
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format Journal Article
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institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T08:22:07Z
publishDate 2009
publisher The American Association for the Advancement of Science
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-311232017-09-13T15:11:18Z Climate-driven basin-scale decadal oscillations of oceanic phytoplankton Martinez, E. Antoine, David D’Ortenzio, F. Gentili, B. Phytoplankton—the microalgae that populate the upper lit layers of the ocean—fuel the oceanic food web and affect oceanic and atmospheric carbon dioxide levels through photosynthetic carbon fixation. Here, we show that multidecadal changes in global phytoplankton abundances are related to basin-scale oscillations of the physical ocean, specifically the Pacific Decadal Oscillation and the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation. This relationship is revealed in ~20 years of satellite observations of chlorophyll and sea surface temperature. Interaction between the main pycnocline and the upper ocean seasonal mixed layer is one mechanism behind this correlation. Our findings provide a context for the interpretation of contemporary changes in global phytoplankton and should improve predictions of their future evolution with climate change. 2009 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/31123 10.1126/science.1177012 The American Association for the Advancement of Science restricted
spellingShingle Martinez, E.
Antoine, David
D’Ortenzio, F.
Gentili, B.
Climate-driven basin-scale decadal oscillations of oceanic phytoplankton
title Climate-driven basin-scale decadal oscillations of oceanic phytoplankton
title_full Climate-driven basin-scale decadal oscillations of oceanic phytoplankton
title_fullStr Climate-driven basin-scale decadal oscillations of oceanic phytoplankton
title_full_unstemmed Climate-driven basin-scale decadal oscillations of oceanic phytoplankton
title_short Climate-driven basin-scale decadal oscillations of oceanic phytoplankton
title_sort climate-driven basin-scale decadal oscillations of oceanic phytoplankton
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/31123