Articles | Volume 18, issue 19
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5513-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-5513-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
12 Oct 2021
Research article |
| 12 Oct 2021
| 12 Oct 2021
Particulate organic carbon dynamics in the Gulf of Lion shelf (NW Mediterranean) using a coupled hydrodynamic–biogeochemical model
Laboratoire d'Aérologie, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, UPS, 14
Avenue Edouard Belin, 31400 Toulouse, France
Caroline Ulses
Laboratoire d'Aérologie, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, UPS, 14
Avenue Edouard Belin, 31400 Toulouse, France
LEGOS, Université de Toulouse, CNES, CNRS, IRD, UPS, 14 Avenue Edouard
Belin, 31400 Toulouse, France
Claude Estournel
Laboratoire d'Aérologie, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, UPS, 14
Avenue Edouard Belin, 31400 Toulouse, France
LEGOS, Université de Toulouse, CNES, CNRS, IRD, UPS, 14 Avenue Edouard
Belin, 31400 Toulouse, France
Patrick Marsaleix
LEGOS, Université de Toulouse, CNES, CNRS, IRD, UPS, 14 Avenue Edouard
Belin, 31400 Toulouse, France
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The South Vietnam upwelling develops in summer along and off the Vietnamese coast. It brings cold and nutrient-rich waters to the surface, allowing photosynthesis essential to marine ecosystems and fishing resources. We show here that its daily variations are mainly due to the wind, thus predictable, in the southern shelf and coastal regions. However, they are more chaotic in the offshore area, and especially in the northern area, due to the influence of eddies of a highly chaotic nature.
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The South Vietnam Upwelling develops in the coastal and offshore regions of the southwestern South China Sea under the influence of summer monsoon winds. Cold, nutrient-rich waters rise to the surface, where photosynthesis occurs and is essential for fishing activity. We have developed a very high-resolution model to better understand the factors that drive the variability of this upwelling at different scales: daily chronology to summer mean of wind and mesoscale to regional circulation.
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Short summary
The Gulf of Lion shelf is one of the most productive areas in the Mediterranean. A model is used to study the mechanisms that drive the particulate organic carbon (POC). The model reproduces the annual cycle of primary production well. The shelf appears as an autotrophic ecosystem with a high production and as a source of POC for the adjacent basin. The increase in temperature induced by climate change could impact the trophic status of the shelf.
The Gulf of Lion shelf is one of the most productive areas in the Mediterranean. A model is used...
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