In Cascadia Margin, strong, wind-driven upwelling during the summer months asserts control on particulate organic matter (POM), oxygen (O2) and carbon dioxide (CO2) dynamics in the region. It is the wind-driven upwelling of O2-poor, CO2- and nutrient-rich waters that make Cascadia Margin vulnerable to ocean acidification and hypoxia. A scientist from Oregon State University seeks to partner with an on-going NOAA-funded project to gather high resolution data on POM concentration and composition. Results from this study will be used to (1) determine the spatial/temporal distribution of POM in the water column of Cascadia Margin during the 2011 upwelling season at comparable resolution to the planned measurements of dissolved gases and nutrients by the NOAA group; (2) characterize the biogeochemical compositions POM from different regions and depths of the water column along Cascadia Margin to elucidate changes in its source and reactivity; and (3) relate POM concentrations/compositions to in-situ optical properties to develop algorithms. In addition, because the POM data will complement the spatial and temporal coverage of oxygen and inorganic carbon dynamics to be obtained by NOAA, both datasets can be readily integrated to critically evaluate the role of POM cycling on seasonal hypoxia and acidification.
In terms of broader impacts, outreach efforts in concert with the Centers for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence Pacific Partnership would be carried out. In addition, it is anticipated that the scientist would continue his participation in workshops for community college faculty to help improve their curricula, as well as provide high school and community college teachers the opportunity to participate in research cruises. One undergraduate student recruited via the Oregon State Native Americans in Science, Engineering and Natural Resources program would be supported and trained as part of this project.
gonilab 12.00 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE gonilab 12.00 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE As part of this project we participated in two cruises along the west coast of the US during the upwelling season in 2011. Both cruises were part of a NOAA-funded project to study ocean acidification and hypoxia along the west coast of the US. In 2012, with additional funds from the College of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, we joined an expedition on the USCGC Healy to investigate particulate organic matter distributions in waters from the Bering, Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. Over 3,000 water samples were collected during these field expeditions, providing an unparalleled view of biomass distributions in surface waters of these key and productive regions of the US coastal seas. The studies along the California Current and the Western Arctic performed as part of this project provide proof of the potential for the semi-automated filtration system to provide high-resolution sampling of particulate organic matter in surface waters. Combined with the in-situ sensor data from underway systems, these measurements give us a "snapshot" of distributions in the surface ocean and allow us to investigate the compositional differences that are otherwise difficult to determine from remote sensing alone. The relationships between variables indicate the presence of different types and/or sources of organic material both spatially and temporally. We are currently integrating our data with measurements of hypoxia and ocean acidification in both regions and such combined data sets should provide a more complete picture of the dynamics in surface waters of these important ocean margin environments. These data provide a baseline to compare with future measurements of these regions as they continue to be affected by climatic changes, providing insight into the responses to a variety of drivers. This proposal provided funds for the training and career development of three undergraduate students. The three undergraduate students, Lauren Smith, Elizabeth Corvi and Kylie Welch, belong to unrepresented groups in the STEM field. All of them gained invaluable experience on oceanographic and analytical techniques, handling of complex data sets, and interpretation of biogeochemical data to understand ocean processes. Lauren graduated last year, and both Elizabeth and Kylie are continuing their studies at OSU – Honors College. Based on their experiences as part of this project, both of them are pursuing their Honors College theses in Chemical Oceanography, and more specifically on the topic of organic matter dynamics in coastal margins.
