Ocean productivity from space

Monitoring open-ocean deep convection from space

Altimetry : Observing Ocean Variability from Space

D I R E C T measurement of large-scale ocean currents with current meter arrays is difficult and costly on basin scales. Since large-scale currents are very nearly in geostrophic balance, their velocity can be calculated from the pressure gradient on an equigeopotential surface. The surface geostrophic current therefore can be calculated from the deviation of sea level from the equigeopotential...

Modeling Atmosphere-Ocean Interactions and Primary Productivity

Modeling Atmosphere-Ocean Interactions and Primary Productivity

The Biological Productivity of the Ocean

Ocean productivity largely refers to the production of organic matter by “phytoplankton,” plants suspended in the ocean, most of which are single-celled. Phytoplankton are “photoautotrophs,” harvesting light to convert inorganic to organic carbon, and they supply this organic carbon to diverse “heterotrophs,” organisms that obtain their energy solely from the respiration of organic matter. Open...