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The acidification of the ocean (OA) increases the frequency and intensity of ocean acidity extreme events (OAXs), but this increase is not occurring homogeneously in time and space. Here we use daily output from a hindcast simulation with a high-resolution regional ocean model coupled to a biogeochemical-ecosystem model (ROMS-BEC) to investigate this heterogeneity in the progression of OAX in the upper 250 m of the Northeast Pacific from 1984 to 2019. We focus on the temporal and spatial changes in OAX using a relative threshold approach and using a fixed baseline reflecting the initial conditions. Concretely, conditions are considered extreme when the local hydrogen ion concentration ([H+]) exceeds the 99th percentile of the [H+] distribution of the baseline simulation where atmospheric CO2 was held at its 1979 level. Within the 36 years of our hindcast simulation, the increase in atmospheric CO2 causes a strong increase in OAX throughout the upper 250 m, but most accentuated near the surface. On average across the entire Northeast Pacific, for every additional 10 μatm of CO2 in the atmosphere, OAXs occupy an additional 6.3 % of the upper 250 m depth, last 7.6 days longer, and are 0.18 nmol L−1 (~ −0.006 pH units) more intense. This causes the OAXs to occupy at the end of the simulation a more than 10-times larger volume. The more than 11-fold increase in length, and the strong increase in the number of extreme days per year causes 88 % of the surface area in 2019 to experience near permanent extreme conditions. Finally, the model simulates a more than 6-fold intensification of the OAXs, causing also the intensity of the events with return periods of 10 years or more to increase by more than 80 %. Superimposed on these overall trends are very substantial spatial and temporal differences in these changes. The fraction of the volume identified as extreme across the top 250 m increases in the Central Northeast Pacific up to 160-times, while the deeper layers of the nearshore regions experience "only" a 4-fold increase. Throughout the upper 50 m of the Northeast Pacific, OAXs increase relatively linearly with time, but sudden rapid increases in yearly extreme days and OAX duration are simulated to occur in the thermocline of the Central Northeast Pacific. These differences largely emerge from the large spatial differences in the magnitude and nature of variability in [H+], with the transition between the rather variable thermocline waters of the Offshore Northeast Pacific and the very stable waters of the Central Northeast Pacific causing a very sharp transition in the occurrence of OAX. This transition is caused by the limited offshore reach of offshore propagating eddies that are the dominant driver of OAX in the Northeast Pacific. As the OAXs become more extreme, more of them also become undersaturated with respect to aragonite (ΩA < 1), i.e., become corrosive. In the final year of our hindcast, we find that below 100 m OAXs are characterized by corrosive conditions across a wide stretch of the region offshore of the U.S. and Canadian Coasts. The spatially and temporal heterogeneous increases in OAX, including the abrupt appearance of extremes, likely have negative effects on the ability of marine organisms to adapt to the progression of OA and its associated extremes.

Radiocarbon, 64 (3), ISSN:0033-8222

Ocean acidification is punctuated by episodic extremes of low pH and saturation state with regard to aragonite (omega(A)). Here, we use a hindcast simulation from 1984 to 2019 with a high-resolution regional ocean model (ROMS-BEC) to identify and track ocean acidification extremes (OAX) in the northeast Pacific and the California current system (CCS). In the first step, we identify all grid-cells whose pH and omega(A) are simultaneously below their first percentile over the analysis period (1984-2019). In the second step, we aggregate all neighboring cells with extreme conditions into three-dimensional time evolving events, permitting us to track them in a Lagrangian manner over their lifetime. We detect more than 22 thousand events that occur at least once in the upper 100 m during their lifetime, with broad distributions in terms of size, duration, volume, and intensity, and with 26% of them harboring corrosive conditions (omega(A) < 1). By clustering the OAXs, we find three types of extremes in the CCS. Near the coast, intense, shallow, and short-lasting OAXs dominate, caused by strong upwelling. A second type consists of large and long-lasting OAX events that are associated with westward propagating cyclonic eddies. They account for only 3% of all extremes, but are the most severe events. The third type is small extremes at depth arising from pycnocline heave. OAXs potentially have deleterious effects on marine life. Marine calcifiers, such as pteropods, might be especially impacted by the long-lasting events with corrosive conditions., Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 127 (5), ISSN:0148-0227, ISSN:2169-9275

Oceanic mesoscale eddies constitute ephemeral hotspots for marine life and are pivotal for the lateral transport of nutrients and organic matter. Here, we use a high-resolution coupled physical-biogeochemical model to study the processes sustaining biological production and export in long-living cyclonic (CE) and anticyclonic (AE) eddies of the northern Canary Upwelling System (CanUS). We track the eddies for 18 months as they propagate offshore, and study their composite properties in time in a Lagrangian manner. Our model shows that long-living CEs sustain their production with the nitrogen that they initially trap in the nearshore nutrient-rich waters and keep isolated in their cores. The vertical input of nitrate from below tends to be comparatively small, and is mostly driven by mixing. In contrast, AEs tend to start with low nutrient concentrations in their core as they do not trap coastal waters, but have elevated concentrations at their periphery. In AEs, stirring is responsible for both the building up of the positive nitrate anomaly at depth and the enhanced lateral input of organic nitrogen in the near-surface. Compared to CEs, the input of nitrate into the euphotic zone by vertical mixing is substantially more important. Though regenerated production dominates in both types of eddies, new production is higher than the regional average in CE cores and at the rim of AEs, partially compensating for the intense losses due to sinking. Both cyclonic trapping and transport and anticyclonic stirring shape the regional pattern of organic matter and nutrients in the northern CanUS., Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 127 (2), ISSN:0148-0227, ISSN:2169-9275

Air-sea interactions substantially modulate oceanic and atmospheric mesoscale variability. Regions of particularly strong oceanic mesoscale activity and hence strong potential for these modulation effects are the highly productive eastern boundary upwelling systems (EBUS), such as the California Current System (CalCS). There, the interactions between atmospheric and oceanic processes can easily alter marine biogeochemical processes or force extreme events with highly anomalous conditions in ocean temperature, pH, and oxygen. Nevertheless, modeling this coupled variability remains challenging due to the small-scale nature of such interactions and the complexity of the system itself. In addition, the extent to which the interplay between atmospheric and oceanic processes impacts the spatial and temporal scales of mesoscale variability and affects the marine ecosystem and ocean biogeochemistry remains largely unknown.Given these complex interactions between the atmosphere, the ocean, and marine biogeochemistry, we developed a coupled regional high-resolution Earth System Model (ROMSOC). For the atmosphere, ROMSOC uses the GPU-accelerated Consortium for Small-Scale Modeling (COSMO) model, and the Regional Oceanic Modeling System (ROMS) model for the ocean. ROMS in turn includes the Biogeochemical Elemental Cycling (BEC) model that describes the functioning of the lower trophic ecosystem in the ocean and the associated biogeochemical cycles. Our current model setup includes thermodynamical and mechanical coupling between the atmosphere and the ocean. Here, we present results from 10-year long coupled simulations for the CalCS at kilometer-scale resolution. We find that the inclusion of atmospheric feedbacks strongly affects oceanic dynamics such as upwelling strength, the advection of water masses and mixed layer depth. In a next step, we will test the hypothesis if this strong mesoscale coupling of the atmosphere and the ocean impacts the spatial and temporal scales of oceanic mesoscale variability such as marine heatwaves and can potentially act to shorten their duration.

Air-sea interactions have been found to substantially affect and drive marine extreme events. Such extreme events comprise, among others, highly anomalous conditions in ocean temperature, pH, and oxygen content - all of which are crucial parameters directly impacting marine ecosystem. Nevertheless, our understanding of the role of such events in the marine environment remains limited. In addition, the extent to which the interplay between atmospheric and oceanic forcings impacts the spatial and temporal scales of extreme events and affects the marine ecosystem and ocean biogeochemistry remains largely unknown. Given these complex interactions between the atmosphere, the ocean, and marine biogeochemistry, we developed a coupled regional high-resolution Earth System Model (ROMSOC). ROMSOC comprises the latest officially released GPU-accelerated Consortium for Small-Scale Modeling (COSMO) version as the atmospheric model, coupled to the Regional Oceanic Modeling System (ROMS). ROMS in turn includes the Biogeochemical Elemental Cycling (BEC) model that describes the functioning of the lower trophic ecosystem in the ocean and the associated biogeochemical cycle. Our current model setup includes thermodynamical coupling and will be extended further to include mechanical coupling between the atmosphere and the ocean. Here, we present first simulations of our coupled model system for the California Current System (CalCS) at the US west coast at kilometer-scale resolution. We will test the hypothesis if the strong mesoscale coupling of the atmosphere and the ocean as represented in our model impacts the spatial and temporal scales of marine heatwaves and can potentially act to shorten their duration.

The Amazon River strongly modifies the biogeochemistry of the Western Tropical Atlantic (WTA). To disentangle the different mechanisms driving these modifications, we conduct a series of modeling experiments with a high-resolution regional ocean model (ROMS) coupled to a biogeochemical/ecological model (BEC) that we augmented to include Diatom-Diazotroph-Assemblages (DDAs). In our model, the Amazon River increases net primary production (NPP) in the WTA by almost 10%, exceeding the stimulation expected from the supplied inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus by a factor of two. This amplification is fueled by new nitrogen stemming from DDA-driven N2 fixation in the plume region, supported, in part, by the consumption of riverine dissolved organic phosphorus. The vertical export of organic carbon is enhanced by a shift of the phytoplankton community toward diatoms induced by the large amount of Si(OH)4 delivered by the Amazon. These changes in NPP and export production induce a strong uptake of atmospheric CO2. In contrast, the remineralization of the river-delivered terrestrial organic matter leads to a release of CO2 over the WTA, which is partially offset by a net uptake induced by the riverine dissolved inorganic carbon and alkalinity. Overall, the Amazon reduces the strong outgassing of the WTA in our simulations by more than 50%. Our study demonstrates how rivers modify the marine biological pump and the air-sea CO2 fluxes in the downstream ocean through a myriad of cascading effects, highlighting the need to fully consider the land-ocean aquatic continuum in the modeling of the Earth System., Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 35 (6), ISSN:0886-6236, ISSN:1944-9224

The Canary upwelling system (CanUS) is a productive coastal region characterized by strong seasonality and an intense offshore transport of organic carbon (Corg) to the adjacent oligotrophic offshore waters. There, the respiration of this Corg substantially modifies net community production (NCP). While this transport and the resulting coupling of the biogeochemistry between the coastal and open ocean has been well studied in the annual mean, the temporal variability, and especially its seasonality, has not yet been investigated. Here, we determine the seasonal variability of the offshore transport of Corg, its mesoscale component, latitudinal differences, and the underlying physical and biological drivers. To this end, we employ the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) coupled to a nutrient–phytoplankton–zooplankton–detritus (NPZD) ecosystem model. Our results reveal the importance of the mesoscale fluxes and of the upwelling processes (coastal upwelling and Ekman pumping) in modulating the seasonal variation of the offshore Corg transport. We find that the region surrounding Cape Blanc (21∘ N) hosts the most intense Corg offshore flux in every season, linked to the persistent, and far reaching Cape Blanc filament and its interaction with the Cape Verde Front. Coastal upwelling filaments dominate the seasonality of the total offshore flux up to 100 km from the coast, contributing in every season at least 80 % to the total flux. The seasonality of the upwelling modulates the offshore Corg seasonality hundreds of kilometers from the CanUS coast via lateral redistribution of nearshore production. North of 24.5∘ N, the sharp summer–fall peak of coastal upwelling results in an export of more than 30 % of the coastal Corg at 100 km offshore due to a combination of intensified nearshore production and offshore fluxes. To the south, the less pronounced upwelling seasonality regulates an overall larger but farther-reaching and less seasonally varying lateral flux, which exports between 60 % and 90 % of the coastal production more than 100 km offshore. Overall, we show that the temporal variability of nearshore processes modulates the variability of Corg and NCP hundreds of kilometers offshore from the CanUS coast via the offshore transport of the nearshore production., Biogeosciences, 18 (8), ISSN:1726-4170

The drop of ruminal pH and heat are common physicochemical stressors challenging ruminal microbiota, nutrient digestion and cattle performance. We characterized the ruminal microbiota and digestive activity in response to different pH (6.0 and 6.6) and temperature (39.5 and 42 °C), as well as established the effective dose of alkaloid supplementation (0, 0.088 and 0.175% of feedstock DM) to modulate ruminal fermentation under these conditions. The acidotic condition decreased microbial diversity and abundances of minor bacterial families whereas most of the highly abundant families like Lactobacillaceae, Prevotellaceae, and Bifidobacteriaceae thrived under the stress. Abundances of all three methanogenic archaea taxa detected increased with heat, as did methane production. However, while Methanomassiliicoccaceae benefited from the low pH, Methanomicrobiaceae diminished and methane production decreased. The low dose of alkaloid addition shifted the fermentation to more propionate and less acetate and the high dose decreased methane and ammonia concentration under the low pH. In conclusion, physicochemical stressors shape the microbial community and function. Mixed alkaloid supplementation facilitates the activity of rumen microbial community under acidotic stress.

Much of the Southern Ocean surface south of 55° S cooled and freshened between at least the early 1980s and the early 2010s. Many processes have been proposed to explain the unexpected cooling, including increased winds or increased surface freshwater fluxes from either the atmosphere or glacial meltwater. However, these mechanisms so far failed to fully explain the surface trends and the concurrently observed warming of the subsurface (100 to 500 m). Here, we argue that these trends are predominantly caused by an increased wind-driven northward transport of sea ice, enhancing the extraction of freshwater near Antarctica and releasing it in the open ocean. This conclusion is based on factorial experiments with a regional ocean model. In all experiments with an enhanced northward transport of sea ice, the open-ocean surface between the Subantarctic Front and the sea-ice edge is cooled by strengthening the salinity dominated oceanic stratification. The strengthened stratification reduces the downward mixing of cold surface water and the upward heat loss of the warmer waters below, thus warming the subsurface. This sea-ice induced subsurface warming mostly occurs around West Antarctica, where it likely enhances ice-shelf melting. Moreover, it could account for about 8±2% of the global ocean heat content increase between 1982 and 2011. Antarctic sea-ice changes thereby may have contributed to the slowdown of global surface warming over this period. The important role of sea-ice in driving changes in the high-latitude Southern Ocean are robust across all considered sensitivity cases, although their magnitude is sensitive to the forcing and the role of salinity in controlling the vertical stratification in the mean state. It remains yet unclear whether these sea-ice induced changes are associated with natural variability or a response to anthropogenic forcing.

Molassed sugar beet pulp (Bp) is a human inedible by-product of the sugar industry being a suitable dietary energy alternative to grains particularly in terms of increasing the net food production efficiency of high-producing dairy cattle. However, there are concerns that feeding large amounts of Bp can limit cow’s feed intake, jeopardizing both the production performance and metabolic health especially of high-producing dairy cows that have high energy needs. In the present study dietary inclusion of Bp as a substitute for maize grain was tested in a longitudinal block-randomized experimental design in early lactation high-yielding Simmental cows. The Bp inclusion rates were 0 g/kg (i.e., no Bp inclusion as control), 120 g/kg (12Bp), or 240 g/kg (24Bp) on a dry matter basis. The replacement of maize grain with Bp reduced the human edible input from 135.4 MJ GE/d in the control diet to 50.7 MJ GE/d in the 24Bp diet (P 0.05), whereas dietary fibre digestibility was linearly improved (P = 0.038) with Bp feeding, indicating enhanced rumen health and functioning with Bp feeding. In conclusion, feeding molassed sugar beet pulp as partial substitution of maize until 240 g/kg is a viable alternative that can improve net food production without impairing the cows’ production performance and the metabolic health status of cows while improving the digestibility of fibre.

Feeding of industrial by-products such as sugar beet pulp (Bp) is an economically viable option in dairy production, but high inclusion rates might impair feed intake and performance of the cows. The present meta-analysis was performed to evaluate inclusion of Bp in dairy cow diets taking into account inclusion rate of Bp, feed intake and production levels of the cows, concentrate level in the diet and replacement aim of Bp (i.e., grain type and forage replaced). Effects on dry matter intake (DMI), ruminal fermentation, and milk production variables as well as on net food production, as a measure of sustainability, were determined using meta-analysis and meta-regression approaches. Data were extracted from 34 different studies published from 1990 to 2016, comprising a total of 103 dietary treatments. The effect of Bp on DMI depended largely ( P = 0.016) on the feed intake level of cows. DMI decreased with increasing Bp inclusion level in cows with a high feed intake level (>3.5% of BW), but not in cows with a low intake level (≤3.5% of BW), noted by an interaction between Bp level and feed intake level ( P = 0.015). Bp inclusion had no effect on milk yield ( P = 0.514) but increased milk fat yield ( P = 0.004) and fat-corrected milk yield ( P = 0.002). Effects of Bp on milk production variables were independent of the dietary concentrate level as well as the replacement aim. Ruminal pH increased ( P = 0.046) but only when Bp was fed at a level of >200 g/kg of diet DM. There were interactions between the Bp inclusion and the dietary concentrate level for molar percentages of propionate ( P = 0.008) and butyrate ( P = 0.021) and, to a lesser extent, for acetate ( P = 0.057), with acetate and propionate being altered by Bp only in high concentrate diets. All variables related to net food production including kg milk/MJ human edible energy input ( P = 0.002) or g milk protein/g human edible protein input ( P = 0.027) were strongly improved by feeding of Bp. In conclusion, the effect of Bp as a feedstuff for dairy cows depends on the cow’s feed intake and production level, whereby high inclusion rates of Bp seem to be particularly beneficial in cows in which the feed intake level does not exceed 3.5% of BW.

The oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) in the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP)have expanded over the past 50 years, likely leading to more frequent and moreintense low oxygen extreme events. This has potentially far-reaching implica-tions for e.g., the production of the climate-relevant gas nitrous oxide or thereduction of habitat for fish and zooplankton. Yet, to date our understandingof the distribution and characteristics of low oxygen extreme events in the ETPremains limited. To fill this gap, we study low oxygen extremes in the ETP using results froman eddy-resolution hindcast simulation with the coupled physical-biogeochemicalmodel ROMS-BEC for the Pacific from 1979 to 2016. Our setup permits us tosimulate oxygen variability in the ETP affected by processes on a broad rangeof scales, from climate modes down to mesoscale dynamics. We detect andtrack low oxygen extreme events in the upper 500 meters of the ETP, by ap-plying temporally constant statistical thresholds to the hindcast simulation andrequiring a minimum event duration of 5 days. While most extremes last lessthan 10 days and are of small volumetric extent, about 15% of the extremesexist for over a month. The diversity of the long-lasting extremes is dominatedby westward propagating low oxygen eddies, which are mostly generated in thenear-coastal area. Superimposed inter-annual variability associated with the ElNiño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) leads to a decrease in mesoscale extremesduring El Niño periods. Along the boundaries of the ETP OMZs transientshoaling events of the oxycline linked to ENSO dynamics or the seasonal cyclecontribute to the generation of further pronounced low oxygen extreme events. The presented detection and tracking of low oxygen extremes is an importantstep towards a better understanding of extreme event occurrences and charac-teristics and lays the groundwork for further research such as the biogeochemicalimpact of such extremes.

The 2015-2016 El Nino contributed to large anomalies across the California Current System (CalCS), but these anomalies ceased unexpectedly in late 2015. Here, we use a suite of three hindcast simulations with the Regional Oceanic Modeling System (ROMS) to assess the responsible mechanisms for this development. We find that the early build-up was primarily driven by the early onset of this event in the tropical Pacific, driving anomalies in the CalCS through the propagation of coastally trapped waves. In contrast, the abrupt end in the central CalCS was caused by the unusual onset of upwelling favorable winds in the fall of 2015, which offset the continuing remote forcing through the coastal waveguide. Nevertheless, low nutrient anomalies persisted, causing anomalously low phytoplankton abundance in the upwelling season of 2016. This is a recurring pattern for all El Nino events over the last 37 years, suggesting predictive skill on seasonal timescales.

Although it is well established that the large-scale wind drives much of the world's ocean circulation, the contribution of the wind energy input at mesoscales (10–200 km) remains poorly known. Here we use regional simulations with a coupled high-resolution atmosphere–ocean model of the South Atlantic, to show that mesoscale ocean features and, in particular, eddies can be energized by their thermodynamic interactions with the atmosphere. Owing to their sea-surface temperature anomalies affecting the wind field above them, the oceanic eddies in the presence of a large-scale wind gradient provide a mesoscale conduit for the transfer of energy into the ocean. Our simulations show that this pathway is responsible for up to 10% of the kinetic energy of the oceanic mesoscale eddy field in the South Atlantic. The conditions for this pathway to inject energy directly into the mesoscale prevail over much of the Southern Ocean north of the Polar Front., The precise mechanism for wind energy input into the ocean at mesoscales remains uncertain. Here, using a high-resolution atmosphere-ocean model of the South Atlantic, the authors show that a mesoscale conduit associated with oceanic eddies is responsible for up to 10% of kinetic energy transfer.

The biogeography of Southern Ocean phytoplankton controls not only the local biogeochemistry, but also the export of macronutrients to lower latitudes and depth. Of particular relevance is the interaction between coccolithophores and diatoms, with the former being prevalent along the "Great Calcite Belt" (40–60°S), while diatoms tend to dominate the regions south of 60°S. To address the factors controlling coccolithophore distribution and the competition between them and diatoms, we use a regional high-resolution model (ROMS-BEC) for the Southern Ocean (24–78°S) that has been extended to include an explicit representation of coccolithophores. We assess the relative importance of bottom-up (temperature, nutrients, light) and top-down (grazing by zooplankton) factors in controlling Southern Ocean coccolithophore biogeography over the course of the growing season. In our simulations, coccolithophores are an important member of the Southern Ocean phytoplankton community, contributing 15% to annually integrated net primary productivity south of 30°S. Coccolithophore biomass is highest north of 50°S in late austral summer, when light levels are high and diatoms become silicate limited. Furthermore, we find top-down factors to be a major control on the relative abundance of diatoms and coccolithophores in the Southern Ocean. Consequently, when assessing potential future changes in Southern Ocean coccolithophore abundance, both abiotic (temperature, light, nutrients, pH) and biotic factors (interaction with diatoms and zooplankton) need to be considered., Biogeosciences Discussions, ISSN:1810-6277, ISSN:1810-6285

ISSN:0148-0227 ISSN:2169-9275

Several studies in upwelling regions have suggested that mesoscale structures, such as eddies and filaments, contribute substantially to the long-range transport of the organic carbon from the nearshore region of production to the offshore region of remineralization. Yet a comprehensive analysis of this mesoscale flux and of its impact across the Canary Upwelling System (CanUS) has not been provided. Here, we fill this gap using simulations with the Regional Oceanic Modeling System (ROMS) coupled to a Nutrient, Phytoplankton, Zooplankton and Detritus (NPZD) ecosystem model. We run climatological simulations on an Atlantic telescopic grid with an eddy-resolving resolution in the CanUS. Using both a Reynolds flux decomposition and structure-identification algorithms, we quantify and characterize the organic carbon fluxes driven by filaments and eddies within the upper 100 m and put them in relationship to the total offshore transport. Our analysis reveals that both coastal filaments and eddies enhance the offshore flux of organic carbon, but that their contribution is very different. Upwelling filaments, with their high speeds and high concentrations, transport the organic carbon offshore in a very intense, but coastally confined manner, contributing nearly 80 % to the total flux of organic carbon at 100 km offshore. The filament contribution tapers off quickly to near zero values at 1000 km off the coast, leading to a strong offshore flux divergence that is the main lateral source of organic carbon in the coastal waters up to 1000 km offshore. Some of this divergence is also due to the filaments inducing a substantial vertical subduction of the organic carbon below 100 m. Owing to the temporal persistence and spatial recurrence of filaments, the filament transport largely constitutes a time-mean flux, while the time-varying component, i.e., the turbulent flux, is comparatively small. At distances beyond 500 km from the coast, eddies dominate the mesoscale offshore transport. Although their contribution represents only 20 % of the total offshore flux and its divergence, eddies, especially cyclones, transport organic carbon offshore to distances as great as 2000 km from the coast. The eddy transport largely represents a turbulent flux, but striations in this transport highlight the existence of typical formation spots and recurrent offshore propagation pathways. While they propagate slowly, eddies are an important organic carbon reservoir for the open waters, as they contain, on average, a third of the organic carbon in this region, two thirds of which is found in cyclones. Our analysis confirms the importance of mesoscale processes for the offshore organic carbon transport and the fueling of the heterotrophic activity in the eastern subtropical North Atlantic, and highlights the need to consider the mesoscale flux in order to fully resolve the three-dimensionality of the marine organic carbon cycle.

High starch lactation diets not only enhance the risk of subacute ruminal acidosis but also of hindgut acidosis, which increases the risk of dysbiosis and the depression of fiber degradation. We recently showed that replacing corn with molassed sugar beet pulp (Bp) improved fiber degradation in high-producing dairy cattle, possibly because of an improvement of rumen and hindgut conditions for microbes by Bp feeding. However, little is known about the effects of high inclusion rates of Bp on hindgut microbes and fermentation. Thus fecal grab samples were taken from 18 high-yielding Simmental cows after 28 d of feeding 3 different levels of Bp (n = 6) for bacterial 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing. In addition, the reticular pH was continuously monitored with indwelling sensors and eating and ruminating behavior was evaluated with noseband sensors. The Bp inclusion rates were 0 g/kg (i.e., no Bp inclusion as control, CON), 120 g/kg (12Bp), or 240 g/kg (24Bp) replacing corn grain and limestone on a dry matter basis. The amount of time spent eating and ruminating was unaffected by Bp level, and the daily fluctuation in the reticular pH was reduced by 25% with Bp inclusion from 0.8 in the CON diet to 0.6 in 24Bp fed animals. Also, the fecal pH tended to increase with dietary Bp inclusion. Fecal acetate production showed a quadratic tendency with the lowest concentration (58.9%) of the total short-chain fatty acid in the 12Bp treatment. Inclusion of Bp up to 24% of the diet decreased the fecal butyrate proportion by 27%. The Shannon diversity index was increased from 5.50 to 8.09 with dietary Bp inclusion indicating increased species diversity. Of the 200 most abundant operational taxonomic units, 25 were increased by dietary Bp inclusion, whereas 15 were decreased and 7 were quadratically affected. The second most abundant group was proposed taxon "CF231" of the family Paraprevotellaceae. Although it accounted for only 2.52% of the operational taxonomic units in the CON diet, it was increased by 64% with dietary Bp inclusion. The largest relative change in the abundance was found for the genus Fibrobacter that increased more than 14-fold from 0.04% (CON) to 0.66% (24Bp). In conclusion, feeding molassed sugar beet pulp as partial substitution of corn up to 240 g/kg is a viable alternative that promotes ruminal and hindgut fermentation by supporting physiological pH and bacterial diversity.

Although mesoscale ocean eddies are ubiquitous in the Southern Ocean, their spatial and seasonal association with phytoplankton has to date not been quantified in detail. To this end, we identify over 100,000 eddies in the Southern Ocean and determine the associated phytoplankton biomass anomalies using satellite-based chlorophyll-a (Chl) as a proxy. The mean eddy associated Chl anomalies (𝛿Chl) exceed &pm;10 % over wide regions. The structure of these anomalies is largely zonal, with cyclonic, thermocline lifting, eddies having positive anomalies in the subtropical waters north of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) and negative anomalies along the ACC. The pattern is similar, but reversed for anticyclonic, thermocline deepening eddies. The seasonality of 𝛿Chl is weak in subtropical waters, but pronounced along the ACC, featuring a seasonal sign switch. The spatial structure and seasonality of 𝛿Chl can be explained largely by lateral advection, especially eddy-stirring. A prominent exception is the ACC region in winter, where 𝛿Chl is consistent with a modulation of phytoplankton light exposure caused by an eddy-induced modification of the mixed layer depth. The clear impact of eddies on phytoplankton may implicate a downstream effect on Southern Ocean biogeochemical properties, such as mode water nutrient contents.

Many aspects of the coupling between the ocean and atmosphere at the mesoscale (on the order of 20–100 km) remain unknown. While recent observations from the Southern Ocean revealed that circular fronts associated with oceanic mesoscale eddies leave a distinct imprint on the overlying wind, cloud coverage, and rain, the mechanisms responsible for explaining these atmospheric changes are not well established. Here the atmospheric response above mesoscale ocean eddies is investigated utilizing a newly developed coupled atmosphere–ocean regional model [Consortium for Small-Scale Modeling–Regional Ocean Modelling System (COSMO-ROMS)] configured at a horizontal resolution of ~10 km for the South Atlantic and run for a 3-month period during austral winter of 2004. The model-simulated changes in surface wind, cloud fraction, and rain above the oceanic eddies are very consistent with the relationships inferred from satellite observations for the same region and time. From diagnosing the model’s momentum balance, it is shown that the atmospheric imprint of the oceanic eddies are driven by the modification of vertical mixing in the atmospheric boundary layer, rather than secondary flows driven by horizontal pressure gradients. This is largely due to the very limited ability of the atmosphere to adjust its temperature over the time scale it takes for an air parcel to pass over these mesoscale oceanic features. This results in locally enhanced vertical gradients between the ocean surface and the overlying air and thus a rapid change in turbulent mixing in the atmospheric boundary layer and an associated change in the vertical momentum flux.

Much of the observed interannual variability in the physical and biogeochemical state of the California Current System (CalCS) is associated with El Nino Southern Oscillation. Yet it is unclear whether this is primarily a result of atmospheric teleconnections forcing the ocean locally through changes in wind and fluxes of heat and freshwater, or whether this is a consequence of oceanic interior processes that transport tropical variability through, e.g., coastally trapped waves to the region. Here we investigate the relative contribution of these two mechanisms in the CalCS using a novel setup of the Regional Oceanic Modeling System coupled to a biogeochemical/ecological model. We conducted a hindcast simulation over the period 1979–2013 and contrast the results with those from sensitivity simulations with climatological atmospheric boundary conditions either for the U.S. West Coast or the rest of the Pacific. We find that remote forcing dominates the variability of the physical state in the nearshore region of the CalCS, explaining up to 80% of monthly mean sea-surface height and temperature variability. In contrast, local processes tend to drive variations in the biogeochemical/ecological state, particularly along central and northern California, explaining up to 50% of the observed surface variability. Most of the remote forcing is a consequence of coastally trapped waves that travel northward at speeds of approximately 230 km d−1, and thereby alter sea-level height, thermocline structure, and upwelling along California. Biogeochemically active tracers respond to this remote forcing as well, especially at depth, but are more strongly modulated by local atmospheric forcing, especially variations in upwelling-favorable winds.

A compilation of measurements of net community production (NCP) in the upper waters of the eastern subtropical North Atlantic had suggested net heterotrophic conditions, purportedly supported by the lateral export of organic carbon from the adjacent, highly productive Canary Upwelling System (CanUS). Here, we quantify and assess this lateral export using the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) coupled to a nutrient, phytoplankton, zooplankton, and detritus (NPZD) ecosystem model. We employ a new Atlantic telescopic grid with a strong refinement towards the northwestern African shelf to combine an eddy-resolving resolution in the CanUS with a full Atlantic basin perspective. Our climatologically forced simulation reveals an intense offshore flux of organic carbon that transports about 19 Tg C yr−1 away from the nearshore 100 km over the whole CanUS, amounting to more than a third of the NCP in this region. The offshore transport extends beyond 1500 km into the subtropical North Atlantic, adding organic carbon along the way to the upper 100 m at rates of between 8 and 34 % of the alongshore average NCP as a function of offshore distance. Although the divergence of this lateral export of organic carbon enhances local respiration, the upper 100 m layer in our model remains net autotrophic in the entire eastern subtropical North Atlantic. However, the vertical export of this organic carbon and its subsequent remineralization at depth makes the vertically integrated NCP strongly negative throughout this region, with the exception of a narrow band along the northwestern African shelf. The magnitude and efficiency of the lateral export varies substantially between the different subregions. In particular, the central coast near Cape Blanc is particularly efficient in collecting organic carbon on the shelf and subsequently transporting it offshore. In this central subregion, the offshore transport adds as much organic carbon as nearly 60 % of the local NCP to the upper 100 m, giving rise to a sharp peak of offshore respiration that extends to the middle of the gyre. Our modeled offshore transport of organic carbon is likely a lower-bound estimate due to our lack of full consideration of the contribution of dissolved organic carbon and that of particulate organic carbon stemming from the resuspension of sediments. But even in the absence of these contributions, our results emphasize the fundamental role of the lateral redistribution of the organic carbon for the maintenance of the heterotrophic activity in the open sea. ISSN:1726-4170 ISSN:1726-4170

Recent salinity changes in the Southern Ocean are among the most prominent signals of climate change in the global ocean, yet their underlying causes have not been firmly established. Here we propose that trends in the northward transport of Antarctic sea ice are a major contributor to these changes. Using satellite observations supplemented by sea-ice reconstructions, we estimate that wind-driven northward freshwater transport by sea ice increased by 20 ± 10 per cent between 1982 and 2008. The strongest and most robust increase occurred in the Pacific sector, coinciding with the largest observed salinity changes. We estimate that the additional freshwater for the entire northern sea-ice edge entails a freshening rate of -0.02 ± 0.01 grams per kilogram per decade in the surface and intermediate waters of the open ocean, similar to the observed freshening. The enhanced rejection of salt near the coast of Antarctica associated with stronger sea-ice export counteracts the freshening of both continental shelf and newly formed bottom waters due to increases in glacial meltwater. Although the data sources underlying our results have substantial uncertainties, regional analyses and independent data from an atmospheric reanalysis support our conclusions. Our finding that northward sea-ice freshwater transport is also a key determinant of the mean salinity distribution in the Southern Ocean further underpins the importance of the sea-ice-induced freshwater flux. Through its influence on the density structure of the ocean, this process has critical consequences for the global climate by affecting the exchange of heat, carbon and nutrients between the deep ocean and surface waters.

Environmental Research Letters, 11 (1), ISSN:1748-9326, ISSN:1748-9318

The zonal surface torque budget associated with the tropical wind stress anomalies during El Nino/Southern Oscillation is analyzed. Mountain and surface stress torques over South America are found to play a prominent role. Local momentum change is negligible for 6 month averages allowing the balance among regional contributions to the torque anomalies to be compared. During El Nino, eastward torque anomalies over the central equatorial Pacific are largely compensated by westward anomalies elsewhere in the equatorial band, notably over South America. Torque anomalies over South America and the Pacific in latitude bands north and south of the equator are both westward and are not compensated within the band, implying an export of eastward momentum to higher latitudes.

Mesoscale eddies are ubiquitous features in the Southern Ocean, yet their phenomenology is not well quantified. To tackle this task, we use satellite observations of sea level anomalies and sea surface temperature (SST) as well as in situ temperature and salinity measurements from profiling floats. Over the period 1997–2010, we identified over a million mesoscale eddy instances and were able to track about 105 of them over 1 month or more. The Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC), the boundary current systems, and the regions where they interact are hot spots of eddy presence, representing also the birth places and graveyards of most eddies. These hot spots contrast strongly to areas shallower than about 2000 m, where mesoscale eddies are essentially absent, likely due to topographical steering. Anticyclones tend to dominate the southern subtropical gyres, and cyclones the northern flank of the ACC. Major causes of regional polarity dominance are larger formation numbers and lifespans, with a contribution of differential propagation pathways of long-lived eddies. Areas of dominance of one polarity are generally congruent with the same polarity being longer-lived, bigger, of larger amplitude, and more intense. Eddies extend down to at least 2000 m. In the ACC, eddies show near surface temperature and salinity maxima, whereas eddies in the subtropical areas generally have deeper anomaly maxima, presumably inherited from their origin in the boundary currents. The temperature and salinity signatures of the average eddy suggest that their tracer anomalies are a result of both trapping in the eddy core and stirring.

International audience; Eddies and other mesoscale oceanic processes, such as fronts, can enhance biological production in the ocean, according to several open-ocean studies. The effect is thought to be particularly pronounced in low-nutrient environments, where mesoscale processes increase the net upward flux of limiting nutrients. However, eddies have been suggested to suppress production in the highly productive eastern boundary upwelling systems. Here, we examine the relationship between satellite-derived estimates of net primary production, of upwelling strength, and of eddy-kinetic energy--a measure of the intensity of mesoscale activity--in the four most productive eastern boundary upwelling systems. We show that high levels of eddy activity tend to be associated with low levels of biological production, indicative of a suppressive effect. Simulations using eddy-resolving models of two of these upwelling systems support the suggestion that eddies suppress production, and show that the downward export of organic matter is also reduced. According to these simulations, the reduction in production and export results from an eddy-induced transport of nutrients from the nearshore environment to the open ocean. Eddies might have a similar effect on marine productivity in other oceanic systems that are characterized by intense eddy activity, such as the Southern Ocean.

We analyze the linearized version of an analytical model, which combines linear ocean dynamics with a simple version of the Bjerknes hypothesis for El Nino. The ocean is represented by linear shallow water equations on an equatorial beta-plane. It is driven by zonal wind stress, which is assumed to have a fixed spatial form. Stress amplitude is set to be proportional to the thermocline displacement at the eastern boundary. It is shown that, for physically plausible parameter values, the model system can sustain growing Oscillations. Both growth rate and period scale directly with the time that an oceanic Kelvin wave needs to crow the basin. They are quite sensitive to the coupling parameter between thermocline displacement and wind stress, and the zonal location and meridional width of the wind. The most important parameter determining this behavior of the system is the coupling constant. For strong coupling the system exhibits exponential growth without oscillation. As the coupling is decreased ...

[1] In late boreal spring, especially May, a strong relationship exists in observations among precipitation anomalies over equatorial South America and the Atlantic intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ), and eastern equatorial Pacific and central equatorial Atlantic sea surface temperature anomalies (SSTA). A chain of correlations of equatorial Pacific SSTA, western equatorial Atlantic wind stress (WEA), equatorial Atlantic SSTA, sea surface height, and precipitation supports a causal chain in which El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) induces WEA stress anomalies, which in turn affect Atlantic equatorial ocean dynamics. These correlations show strong seasonality, apparently arising within the atmospheric links of the chain. This pathway and the influence of equatorial Atlantic SSTA on South American rainfall in May appear independent of that of the northern tropical Atlantic. Brazil's Nordeste is affected by the northern tropical Atlantic. The equatorial influence lies further to the north over the eastern Amazon and the Guiana Highlands.

Ocean deoxygenation has led to a measurable shoaling of subsurface hypoxic waters ([O-2] < 60 mmol m(-3)) in the tropical Pacific and elsewhere. This shoaling compresses the vertical habitat of heterotrophic organisms between the well oxygenated surface and the hypoxic interface. Superimposed on this long-term trend, natural variability can cause shorter-term, extreme habitat compression events, which we term Transient Habitat Reduction Extreme Events (THREEs). Here, we investigate THREEs in the Eastern Pacific (EP) between 1979 and 2016 using output from a high-resolution hindcast simulation with the coupled physical-biogeochemical ocean model ROMS-BEC. We identify THREEs on the basis of the hypoxic interface being shallower than the 99th percentile of its variability and requiring a minimum duration of five days. We find that THREEs compress the aerobic habitat by up to 50%-70% (locally exceeding 80%) in the subtropical and tropical EP and reach horizontal scales exceeding 300 km in the tropical EP. There, THREEs are pre-conditioned by La Nina conditions and occur primarily in boreal winter and spring. In the subtropical EP, THREEs are associated with mesoscale eddies and occur independently of the season. 71% (32%) of all THREEs are characterized by unusually high acidity (cold) conditions (i.e., below the first percentile), thus constituting compound events. The strong habitat compression during THREEs is bound to lead to substantial changes in water column biogeochemistry, in food-web interactions, and in ecosystem structure. Yet, so far, very little is known about the impact of these transient phenomena., Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 127 (6), ISSN:0148-0227, ISSN:2169-9275