The Global Ocean Ship-based Hydrographic Investigations Program (GO-SHIP) is a systematic re-occupation of key global hydrographic sections that began in 2003. The sections span all ocean basins and reach full ocean depth, with physical and chemical measurements of the highest ‘reference standard’ accuracy. This level of data quality is attainable only with research ships for the foreseeable future. The U.S. GO-SHIP program is a major contributor to international GO-SHIP, designed to monitor the ocean's response to climate change as part of the World Climate Research Programme’s Global Ocean Observing System. This grant will extend this unique climate data set over the next six years. The new hydrographic data sets collected by U.S. GO-SHIP will contribute to overlapping scientific and technical objectives related to: 1) heat/freshwater storage and flux; 2) carbon system and biogeochemical studies; 3) water mass ventilation; 4) model calibration, validation, and state estimation; and 5) autonomous sensor calibration, including Core (2000 m T, S), Deep, and Biogeochemical Argo profiling floats. Building on observations first made in the 1990's, this program has been critical to developing our understanding of ocean-related climate changes including: warming of the abyssal ocean that takes up ~10% of the Earth's excess heat; changes in circulation and ventilation; increasing anthropogenic carbon uptake and its impact on global carbon budgets and acidification; declining oxygen concentrations; and expansion of oxygen minimum zones. The U.S. GO-SHIP open data policy has resulted in rapid, widespread availability and use of data. The program benefits society as it is the only globally available source of information about changes in the deep (>2000m) ocean. The data will continue to be a resource for climate model validation. Outreach for U.S. GO-SHIP data collection (cruise-based) and synthesis will extend data usefulness and public awareness. The program will continue to promote and expand scientific and leadership training for graduate students, postdoctoral scientists, and early career scientists. Funds are budgeted for graduate students, postdocs, and young scientists to participate in each cruise, and for an annual postdoc program to entrain young scientists in use of these invaluable observations.
Fourteen research cruises during the period 2021-2026 are planned, with the continuing objective of systematically quantifying global-scale changes in storage and transport of heat, freshwater, carbon, oxygen, nutrients, and related parameters. Nine cruises will be led by NSF/UNOLS, four by NOAA, and one will be joint. Included measurements are: hydrographic/physical (CTDO2, salinity, oxygen, nutrients, U, V and W from LADCP, U and V from underway ADCP, underway T and S, meteorology, bathymetry), carbon system (DIC, pCO2, TAlk, pH, DOC, TDN, underway pCO2), and transient tracers (CFCs, SF6). U.S. GO-SHIP will continue to cooperate with separately funded investigators: examples include measurement of 14C, Fe/trace metals, 3H/3He; microstructure turbulence measurements, as well as floats and drifters. This grant includes funds to collect data and perform quality control to achieve reference quality, with limited synthesis through support of postdoctoral researchers. Data will be released using the successful approach in place since 2003, with a stringent data policy of rapid and open dissemination, including transfer to recognized data centers.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
