Uploaded February 2024 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
Title: Planktonic associations in the northern Bering and Chukchi Seas
Speaker: Silvana Gonzalez, PhD, NRC Postdoctoral Fellow at NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center, Seattle, WA
Abstract: The Northern Bering and Chukchi Seas have been undergoing dramatic oceanographic changes associated with increasing temperatures and shortening of the sea-ice covered season. Changes in the environment impact planktonic communities, including phytoplankton, microzooplankton, and mesozooplankton which are important prey items for key Arctic fish. Decreasing trends in phytoplankton size and increased abundances of smaller zooplankton of Pacific origin have been reported for the Northern Bering and Chukchi Seas as a response to warming and sea ice loss. Changes in composition and size structure of planktonic communities can affect trophic interactions, energy pathways, and benthic-pelagic coupling altering the entire structure of Arctic marine ecosystems and the services it provides to human communities. A set of integrated ecosystem surveys were conducted in spring of 2017 and 2018 and in late summer/early fall of 2017 and 2019 in the Northern Bering and Chukchi seas as part of the Arctic Integrated Ecosystem Research Program (Arctic IERP). We used concurrent samples on phytoplankton, microzooplankton, mesozooplankton, and oceanographic conditions from these surveys and a Structural Equation Modeling approach to understand mechanistic associations among planktonic communities and the environment. In general, differences in oceanographic conditions influenced abundance and size composition of planktonic communities. Higher water temperatures and increased inflow of warm Coastal Water were associated with smaller phytoplankton, lower microzooplankton biomass and a predominance of small neritic copepod species. Our study provides insight into the mechanisms structuring planktonic communities and increases our understanding of ecosystem level responses to climate change and other anthropogenic impacts.
Title: Record Arctic cyclone of January 2022: how it led to a record loss of sea ice and how forecasts fared
Speaker: Edward Blanchard-Wrigglesworth, PhD, Research Assistant Professor at University of Washington College of the Environment, Seattle, WA
Abstract: The strongest recorded storm in the Arctic took place in January 2022. This storm was characterized by record wind speeds, sea ice loss and turbulent fluxes, and anomalous but less extreme temperature anomalies. We learned that some of this storm's record-breaking characteristics were predicted well by model forecasts. However, the effects of this storm on the Arctic sea ice cover were not well predicted. Forecasts underestimated the decrease in sea ice thickness and area from the storm. Satellite observations showed large waves traveling into the icepack, which may have contributed to the sea-ice loss. Such processes may be poorly represented in the forecast model, which hinder its ability to accurately forecast sea-ice conditions. Improving initial conditions and the representation of interactions between the atmosphere, sea ice, and ocean in models will help improve forecasts of weather and sea ice.
EcoFOCI 2023 Summer Seminar Series
This seminar is part of NOAA EcoFOCI (Ecosystems & Fisheries-Oceanography Coordinated Investigations)'s bi-annual seminar series that are focused on the ecosystems of the North Pacific Ocean, Bering Sea and the US Arctic to improve understanding of ecosystem dynamics and applications of that understanding to the management of living marine resources. EcoFOCI is a joint research program between the Alaska Fisheries Science Center (NOAA/ NMFS/ AFSC) and the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (NOAA/ OAR/ PMEL). Visit the EcoFOCI webpage for more information, ecofoci.noaa.gov
Title: Planktonic associations in the northern Bering and Chukchi Seas
Speaker: Silvana Gonzalez, PhD, NRC Postdoctoral Fellow at NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center, Seattle, WA
Abstract: The Northern Bering and Chukchi Seas have been undergoing dramatic oceanographic changes associated with increasing temperatures and shortening of the sea-ice covered season. Changes in the environment impact planktonic communities, including phytoplankton, microzooplankton, and mesozooplankton which are important prey items for key Arctic fish. Decreasing trends in phytoplankton size and increased abundances of smaller zooplankton of Pacific origin have been reported for the Northern Bering and Chukchi Seas as a response to warming and sea ice loss. Changes in composition and size structure of planktonic communities can affect trophic interactions, energy pathways, and benthic-pelagic coupling altering the entire structure of Arctic marine ecosystems and the services it provides to human communities. A set of integrated ecosystem surveys were conducted in spring of 2017 and 2018 and in late summer/early fall of 2017 and 2019 in the Northern Bering and Chukchi seas as part of the Arctic Integrated Ecosystem Research Program (Arctic IERP). We used concurrent samples on phytoplankton, microzooplankton, mesozooplankton, and oceanographic conditions from these surveys and a Structural Equation Modeling approach to understand mechanistic associations among planktonic communities and the environment. In general, differences in oceanographic conditions influenced abundance and size composition of planktonic communities. Higher water temperatures and increased inflow of warm Coastal Water were associated with smaller phytoplankton, lower microzooplankton biomass and a predominance of small neritic copepod species. Our study provides insight into the mechanisms structuring planktonic communities and increases our understanding of ecosystem level responses to climate change and other anthropogenic impacts.
Title: Record Arctic cyclone of January 2022: how it led to a record loss of sea ice and how forecasts fared
Speaker: Edward Blanchard-Wrigglesworth, PhD, Research Assistant Professor at University of Washington College of the Environment, Seattle, WA
Abstract: The strongest recorded storm in the Arctic took place in January 2022. This storm was characterized by record wind speeds, sea ice loss and turbulent fluxes, and anomalous but less extreme temperature anomalies. We learned that some of this storm's record-breaking characteristics were predicted well by model forecasts. However, the effects of this storm on the Arctic sea ice cover were not well predicted. Forecasts underestimated the decrease in sea ice thickness and area from the storm. Satellite observations showed large waves traveling into the icepack, which may have contributed to the sea-ice loss. Such processes may be poorly represented in the forecast model, which hinder its ability to accurately forecast sea-ice conditions. Improving initial conditions and the representation of interactions between the atmosphere, sea ice, and ocean in models will help improve forecasts of weather and sea ice.
EcoFOCI 2023 Summer Seminar Series
This seminar is part of NOAA EcoFOCI (Ecosystems & Fisheries-Oceanography Coordinated Investigations)'s bi-annual seminar series that are focused on the ecosystems of the North Pacific Ocean, Bering Sea and the US Arctic to improve understanding of ecosystem dynamics and applications of that understanding to the management of living marine resources. EcoFOCI is a joint research program between the Alaska Fisheries Science Center (NOAA/ NMFS/ AFSC) and the Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (NOAA/ OAR/ PMEL). Visit the EcoFOCI webpage for more information, ecofoci.noaa.gov
