Research

This is a class cruise to introduce graduate students in SIOB280 Biological Oceanography to sampling and organisms at sea. We will conduct CTD profiles, plankton net hauls, and an otter trawl, during two one-day cruises. The data will be used in class projects and exams.

Since 1978, the Oceanic Flux Program (OFP) has been continuously measuring particle fluxes in the deep Sargasso Sea, with a >90% temporal coverage of the 3200 m flux over its 45 years. The OFP is the longest-running time-series of its kind and has generated an exceptional record of temporal variability in the "biological pump", a term loosely applied here to material transfer from the surface to deep ocean resulting from upper ocean biological and physical processes. Two overarching goals drive core activities funded under the OFP grant. The first is to extend the time-series by collecting new samples of the highest quality, while ensuring they have a comprehensive oceanographic context. The second is to elucidate the processes that drive oceanic particle flux through comparative studies of flux magnitude and composition with concurrent observations of external forcing (e.g., synoptic scale meteorology, climate patterns), surface water physics and biology (e.g., mesoscale features, blooms), and interior processes (e.g., biological particle aggregation/disaggregation, elemental scavenging, authigenic mineralization).

Annual survey using trawling and hydroacoustics to survey the health of the fisheries in Minnesota waters of Lake Superior

NES-LTER cross-shelf transect cruises are conducted between Martha’s Vineyard and the continental shelf break directly south. The overarching goal of the NES-LTER is to understand and predict how planktonic food webs change through space and time in response to changes in the physical environment, and how those changes impact ecosystem productivity, including of higher trophic levels. Observations and models are focused on processes and mechanisms that structure pelagic food webs, trophic transformations, and productivity, as well as the key interactions and feedbacks that modulate relationships among them. NES-LTER transect process cruises are focused on characterizing cross-shelf distributions of physical properties, nutrients, production rates, and plankton. Approximately 11 stations will be occupied in waters depths typically less than 200 m, but up to ~1600 m. Operations will include underway sampling of biological and chemical properties with science-provided instruments, CTD/rosette casts, net tows, on-deck incubations, and deployment of a towed vehicle.

TEAL-SHIPS (Transect Expedition to Assess Land-to-Sea Habitats via Interdisciplinary Process Studies) seeks to characterize the ecological processes across a diverse environmental gradient. Our team consists of physical, chemical, and biological oceanographers and students. Funded by the University of North Carolina (UNC) System Research Opportunities Initiative (ROI), TEAL-SHIPS has initiated collaborations across multiple institutions in our state to conduct eight research cruises seasonally over two years, from the mouth of the Cape Fear River (near Wilmington, NC, USA) to the Gulf Stream. Thus far, we have completed five cruises on board the R/V Cape Hatteras , managed by the Cape Fear Community College (CFCC) Marine Technology program, who are partners and collaborators in this project. On each of these previous expeditions, we have assessed coastal-to-offshore habitats across our transect including physical (e.g., temperature, salinity, oxygen, currents), chemical (e.g., chlorophyll, carbon, metabolites, nutrients), and biological (bacteria/archaea, plankton, fish) parameters from CTD casts, net tows, and trawls.

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On this cruise, we will replicate instrument deployment from cruise TeSSA-cruise-2D. We will deploy two new HAVN very broadband ocean bottom seismometers (OBSs). We will also deploy a Liquid-Robotics Inc waveglider. The waveglider is capable of establishing acoustic near-realtime data transfer from the OBSs to a shore-side desktop computer. The waveglider will shuttle between the two HAVNs and take turn in uploading seismic data via satellite link to our desktop. We will also deploy a traditional broadband OBS to allow assessment of instrument fidelity and to locate seismicity in the California Borderland.

Researchers from NOAA's Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) in Miami, FL, conduct regular bimonthly hydrographic surveys at 27N in the Florida Straits to monitor the transport and water-mass properties of the Florida Current. The Florida Current is part of the Gulf Stream system, which is the upper limb of the western boundary current system in the North Atlantic Ocean. These cruises are a part of the laboratory’s long-running Western Boundary Time Series (WBTS) project and directly measure the Florida Current at nine locations across the Straits of Florida at 27N, between Jupiter, Florida, and the Little Bahama Bank in the Bahamas. WBTS 27N hydrographic sections, conducted bimonthly throughout the year, are critical to improving our understanding of the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre circulation and the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). Importantly, data collected during these cruises and others are also used to calibrate the 27N submarine cable system which publicly provides daily transport estimates of the Florida Current . The AMOC is a significant factor in climate change, oceanic carbon sequestration, and sustainable fisheries.

The Southeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program (SEAMAP) Shrimp/Groundfish trawl surveys are conducted throughout the Gulf of Mexico to provide fishery-independent monitoring and assessment information on shrimp and groundfish assemblages associated with low relief soft bottom habitats. These data are essential to the management of the fisheries resources in the Gulf of Mexico. Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF), as well as SEAMAP state partners, sample in conjunction with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to provide a Gulf-wide trawl survey each summer and fall.

Systematic long-term (greater than a few decades in length) time-series observations of aquatic and terrestrial environments have led to a more comprehensive understanding of the natural ecosystem variability and have enabled an assessment of human impacts on ecosystem dynamics. Because of their ability to store and transport large amounts of heat and to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, the world's oceans play a critical role in modulating environmental conditions for the sustained well-being of both land-based and marine organisms including humans. Despite their recognized scientific and societal importance, long-term records of key ocean processes are rare. In 1988, the Hawaii Ocean Time-series (HOT) program, near Hawaii was established. For over three decades, teams of scientists based at the University of Hawaii have made critical measurements of the 'state of our sea.' These long-term observations have established a baseline against which future states can be compared. The ship-based HOT program complements other diverse ocean observation programs including remote-sensing via satellites, moored buoys, profiling floats, and autonomous underwater vehicles. All HOT program data are publicly available and are frequently used by researchers and policy makers around the world.

Long-term observations over several decades are a powerful tool for investigating ocean physics, biology, and chemistry, and the response of the oceans to environmental change. The Bermuda Atlantic Time-Series Study, known as BATS, has been running continuously since 1988. The research goals of the BATS program are: (1) to improve our understanding of the time-varying components of the ocean carbon cycle and the cycles of related nutrient elements such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and silicon; and, (2) to identify the relevant physical, chemical and ecosystem properties responsible for this variability. In addition, the BATS program has strong and diverse broader impacts, contributing to the field of ocean sciences by providing high quality ocean observations and data for seagoing scientists and modelers, and a framework through which researchers can conceive and test hypotheses. This award will support operations of the BATS program for five more years. This research integrates ocean physics, chemistry and biology into a framework for understanding oceanic processes and ocean change in the North Atlantic subtropical gyre. The existing years of BATS data provide robust constraints on seasonal and interannual variability, the response of the Sargasso Sea ecosystem to natural climate variability, and signal detection of potential ocean changes.

One of the longest open-ocean hydrographic stations in the world is maintained at the Hydrostation S site (formerly known as the Panulirus site) located ~25 km southeast of Bermuda in the North Atlantic Ocean. This program of repeat biweekly hydrographic observations began in 1954 (by Hank Stommel) and now, in its seventh decade, has proved to be the catalyst for numerous studies of ocean physics, biological processes and biogeochemistry. Hydrostation S continues to be recognized as one of the most important sustained ocean time–series. The renewal of the Hydrostation S program is proposed herein, extending this invaluable time–series of ocean hydrography to almost 70 years. The upper ocean warming trend has strengthened (about +1.4° C since the 1970's; ~+0.8°C in last decade) with significant salinification (+0.16). Deeper waters such as the Labrador Sea Water has cooled by a few tenths of a degree and freshened with a marked decadal oscillation. The signature of deoxygenation has been observed at Hydrostation S in the upper ocean (about 4 µmoles kg -1 decade -1 decrease in dissolved oxygen) as well as the oxygen minimum zone (~2.5 µmoles kg -1 decade -1 ). Hydrostation S also supports the longest global ocean CO 2 and acidification time-series (from 1983 to present)

SIO hosts an undergraduate Marine Biology major, which requires all students to take SIO 136 (Marine Biology Laboratory). A key feature of this course—an at-sea experience aboard the R/V Gordon Sproul—was suspended due to COVID-19 and growing class sizes. We now seek to reinstate it with 2 ship days per quarter (Fall and Spring only) in 2026. With 72 students enrolled, we propose four half-day cruises per quarter, each accommodating ~24 students plus instructors and technical experts (~30 total participants per trip). Cruise goals include: (1) demonstrating tools used to study marine organisms, (2) collecting hydrographic data to illustrate features of the southern California shelf (e.g., thermocline, chlorophyll max, oxygen/pH declines), (3) towing for phytoplankton, zooplankton, and invertebrate larvae, and (4) surveying midwater communities using an IKMWT. Cruises would take place outside San Diego Bay over ~4-hour periods and have been shortened from past years to fit the larger class. This cruise provides the only at-sea experience required for all Marine Biology majors, offering hands-on exposure to oceanographic research and organisms not observable from shore. Some samples will be brought back for lab analysis. This proposal satisfies the Class Cruise/Instruction at Sea category.

The continental shelf near Cape Hatteras, NC is one of the strongest biogeographic barriers in the ocean. However, the processes that allow transport from the south to the north against the prevailing equatorward currents are poorly understood Transport of marine organisms across convergence zones is key to understanding the deterrents to biodiversity shifts in the coastal ocean. The purpose of this work is to determine the dominant mechanisms of shifts from the South Atlantic Bight to the Mid-Atlantic Bight (SAB2MAB) by conducting the first comprehensive ichthyoplankton surveys in this region in over twenty years and combining observations with state-of-the-art spatio-temporal modeling. Since little to no data on egg and larval distribution exist in this region and the existing data are decades old, current data on fish egg and larval distribution are needed to generate current spawning index maps and to compare to model results of potential and realized connectivity. Our field sampling will compare cool vs. warm season transport and connectivity from the SAB to MAB. We propose to conduct four cruises over two years, one in each season.

This award will fund the University of Miami to continue a consensus reference material (CRM) program in support of consistent, high-quality measurements of DOC by the international ocean chemistry community. With the continuation of this work, the US and international communities will create with confidence consistent measurements of a major marine carbon reservoir, thereby advancing society’s ability to assess changes in the marine carbon cycle and the role of the ocean in climate change. With continued strong international efforts to investigate the marine carbon cycle, the existing CRM program provides the necessary benchmark for globally comparable marine DOC measurements. Water from the deep Florida Strait (~42 mol/kg DOC) will be collected, ampoulated, and distributed to the US and international community. Since the program's launch, ~228,000 vials of reference waters have been distributed to ~240 US and international laboratories in 45 nations, currently at a rate of ~27,000 vials/year. With renewal of the reference material program for 3 years of support, distribution of deep ocean water containing biologically refractory dissolved organic carbon and low carbon reference water will continue to aid the analytical work of the DOM community.

The Work consists of a submarine cable route geophysical survey in Hawaii State waters and the adjacent U.S. EEZ, as requested by Marker Offshore, LLC. The survey comprises three discrete offshore segments, two lines along each segment, as depicted in Figure B-1 below. All segments are conducted as dedicated survey passes; no intermediate port calls are planned.

The BIOS-SCOPE team mission is to advance an understanding of ocean food web sources, sinks and transformations of dissolved and particulate organic matter in the context of defining characteristics of the seasonally oligotrophic Sargasso Sea. The location of the BIOS-SCOPE study, the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS) site, experiences vigorous physical mixing in winter / spring followed by quiescent and stratified periods in the summer / early fall that results in both spring phytoplankton blooms and extremely low-nutrient surface conditions in each annual cycle. The dramatic seasonality of BATS makes it an excellent site for exploring features of biogeochemistry related to ocean mixing and stratification, and for exploring the long-term consequences of ocean surface warming. This study site supports the longest running open ocean metagenomics time-series in oceanography northwestern Sargasso Sea. In its third phase the BIOS-SCOPE team is poised to integrate its range of skills to investigate specific mechanisms of organic matter production, oxidation and transformation in both DOM and POM. New metagenomic, transcriptomic and proteomic approaches will be used to further explore microbial ecology in this oligotrophic system and how it controls biogeochemical cycling.

The project will test key hypotheses about deep-sea methane dynamics including determining if there are significant lags in microbial responses after exposure to elevated methane concentrations, determining the relationships of AMOR to methane and DIN concentrations and investigating the response times and magnitude of methanotrophs to spatial and temporal variability in methane concentration. Successful collection of in situ AMOR and associated microbial community data will prove important for modeling ocean methane dynamics over a range of oceanographic conditions including seep-enriched bottom waters and accidental hydrocarbon releases.

One of the longest open-ocean hydrographic stations in the world is maintained at the Hydrostation S site (formerly known as the Panulirus site) located ~25 km southeast of Bermuda in the North Atlantic Ocean. This program of repeat biweekly hydrographic observations began in 1954 (by Hank Stommel) and now, in its seventh decade, has proved to be the catalyst for numerous studies of ocean physics, biological processes and biogeochemistry. Hydrostation S continues to be recognized as one of the most important sustained ocean time–series. The renewal of the Hydrostation S program is proposed herein, extending this invaluable time–series of ocean hydrography to almost 70 years. The upper ocean warming trend has strengthened (about +1.4° C since the 1970's; ~+0.8°C in last decade) with significant salinification (+0.16). Deeper waters such as the Labrador Sea Water has cooled by a few tenths of a degree and freshened with a marked decadal oscillation. The signature of deoxygenation has been observed at Hydrostation S in the upper ocean (about 4 µmoles kg -1 decade -1 decrease in dissolved oxygen) as well as the oxygen minimum zone (~2.5 µmoles kg -1 decade -1 ). Hydrostation S also supports the longest global ocean CO 2 and acidification time-series (from 1983 to present)

This request is for the major infrastructure deployment and recovery of the National Science Foundation (NSF) Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) Coastal Endurance Array (EA) ( https://www.oceanobservatories.org ). This cruise is for the deployment of up to three surface moorings off central Oregon and central Washington along with the deployment and recovery of up to two gliders and the collection of supporting ship-based sampling (lowered CTD, underway oceanographic and meteorological measurements.