| NSF Org: |
OPP Office of Polar Programs (OPP) |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | July 13, 2010 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | February 2, 2015 |
| Award Number: | 1023446 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
William Ambrose
wambrose@nsf.gov (703)292-8048 OPP Office of Polar Programs (OPP) GEO Directorate for Geosciences |
| Start Date: | July 15, 2010 |
| End Date: | June 30, 2016 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $203,161.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $243,411.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2015 = $40,250.00 |
| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
2145 N TANANA LOOP FAIRBANKS AK US 99775-0001 (907)474-7301 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
2145 N TANANA LOOP FAIRBANKS AK US 99775-0001 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | AON-Arctic Observing Network |
| Primary Program Source: |
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| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.078 |
ABSTRACT
The Arctic Ocean ecosystem may respond dramatically to climate change through already observed modification of the physical environment (e.g., hydrography and ice cover). A better understanding of the coupled biological-physical ocean ecosystem, and its interannual variability, is necessary to predict and understand these potential impacts of climate change on the Arctic ecosystem. The Chukchi-Beaufort Sea region near Barrow, AK, including coastal waters, has been identified as key because it lies at the junction of several ocean regions and downstream of the Pacific Arctic gateway and hence is influenced physically and ecologically by input from Bering Strait. Researchers have conducted oceanographic sampling of the coupled physical and biological marine environment in the Chukchi and near-shore Beaufort Seas for five years (2005 ? 2009), including coastal waters, using boat-based surveys during late summer and short-term (month) and year-long bottom-mounted moorings, and have observed significant interannual variability. They will now establish annual surveys of the pelagic marine environment and deploy a year-round mooring in Barrow Canyon as components of the Arctic Observing Network (AON). The surveys will measure a range of biological and physical parameters including hydrography, currents, plankton standing stocks, nutrients, and plankton genetics. The mooring will measure ocean currents, near bottom temperature and salinity, and acoustic backscatter (zooplankton proxy) in Barrow Canyon at a location typically within or beneath the Alaska Coastal Current.
Results from this AON component will provide a 10-year record and enable a better understanding of inter-annual variability in the physical and biological characteristics of the Barrow area ocean confluence. Based on these data, changes in biological characteristics that respond to larger climate change can be detected. This proposed AON component includes measurements of key oceanic biological and chemical parameters, and their coupling to physical parameters from a region sensitive to climate change.
The researchers will actively communicate plans and results with the community of Barrow through formal and informal discussions and presentations. They will also support the participation of a teacher in fieldwork for two of the years.
PUBLICATIONS PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THIS RESEARCH
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PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT
Disclaimer
This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.
Our six-year project (2010-2015) “Annual Observations of the Biological and Physical Marine Environment in the Chukchi and nearshore Beaufort Seas near Barrow, AK - A biophysical component of the Arctic Observing Network” acquired measurements of ocean temperature, salinity and currents and sampled plankton (microalgae, photosynthetic bacteria and microscopic animals) where the Chukchi Sea and Beaufort Sea meet near Barrow, Alaska. This project built upon five prior years (2005-2009) of late summer ocean sampling at the same locations.
The composite 11-year dataset shows that changes in area winds over periods from days to weeks and from year to year change the amounts of heat, freshwater, nutrients, and plankton carried to the Arctic Ocean via Barrow Canyon and change the manner in which these physical and biological constituents are organized (when and where they occur) in Barrow Canyon and adjacent waters. These results are important because they provide reference points for detecting and assessing climate-driven changes to the local marine environment.
In addition to measurements and samples acquired in Barrow Canyon, companion measurements and samples were acquired in shallow nearshore waters, arguably the most poorly sampled waters in this portion of the Alaskan arctic. The near shore measurements of chlorophyll, dissolved organic matter and sediments have broader applicability as their distributions under different wind and circulation regimes provide background information for designing a future field program for validation of satellite remote sensing of these parameters.
Of more local interest, analyses of bowhead and beluga whale observations (locations and times) provided by collaborating marine mammal scientists and local hunters, in conjunction with our project results have shown that wind-driven changes to the Barrow-area marine environment influence feeding opportunities for these two whale species.
Last Modified: 08/08/2016
Modified by: Stephen Okkonen
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