Eddies: The key to understanding Southern Ocean carbon cycling. This project plans to observe an eddy in the Southern Ocean for three weeks, to understand how its circulation affects ocean productivity and the exchange of carbon dioxide between the ocean and atmosphere. Ocean eddies are like small high and low pressure weather systems which spin either clockwise or anticlockwise, are about 100–200 kilometres across and several hundred metres deep. Eddies are important because they generate verti ....Eddies: The key to understanding Southern Ocean carbon cycling. This project plans to observe an eddy in the Southern Ocean for three weeks, to understand how its circulation affects ocean productivity and the exchange of carbon dioxide between the ocean and atmosphere. Ocean eddies are like small high and low pressure weather systems which spin either clockwise or anticlockwise, are about 100–200 kilometres across and several hundred metres deep. Eddies are important because they generate vertical currents that move nutrients and carbon dioxide up and down. Expected project outcomes will include a better understanding of carbon cycling in an ocean region that is central to the climate of Australia and the rest of the planet.Read moreRead less
Unraveling ocean mixing and air-sea forcing along the Indo-Pacific exchange. This project aims to collect unprecedented observations and develop high resolution model simulations to examine changes in the Indonesian Throughflow (ITF) north of Australia. This project expects to develop new knowledge of ocean-atmosphere interactions along the path of the ITF from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean, which are the powerhouse that drives changes in winds and rainfall around Australia and the entire Indo ....Unraveling ocean mixing and air-sea forcing along the Indo-Pacific exchange. This project aims to collect unprecedented observations and develop high resolution model simulations to examine changes in the Indonesian Throughflow (ITF) north of Australia. This project expects to develop new knowledge of ocean-atmosphere interactions along the path of the ITF from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean, which are the powerhouse that drives changes in winds and rainfall around Australia and the entire Indo-Pacific region. Expected outcomes include a 1000-fold increase in the observations of mixing in the Indonesian seas and new understanding of the ocean-atmosphere processes that control water property change along the ITF. This should lead to strong improvement in the skill of climate forecast models in the Australian region.Read moreRead less
Antarctica's leaky defence to poleward heat transport. Southern Ocean currents are barriers to the oceanic transport of heat toward Antarctica. This barrier breaks down at key locations along their path and the poleward heat transport is enhanced. Changing winds are expected to accelerate heat transport, threatening ice shelves that protect Antarctic glaciers from ocean-driven melt. This project aims to advance understanding of the small-scale processes that control heat transport across the Sou ....Antarctica's leaky defence to poleward heat transport. Southern Ocean currents are barriers to the oceanic transport of heat toward Antarctica. This barrier breaks down at key locations along their path and the poleward heat transport is enhanced. Changing winds are expected to accelerate heat transport, threatening ice shelves that protect Antarctic glaciers from ocean-driven melt. This project aims to advance understanding of the small-scale processes that control heat transport across the Southern Ocean. By combining funded international field campaigns that harness new advances in observing systems with next-generation numerical modelling, this research will create a step-change in our ability to predict Southern Ocean environmental change.Read moreRead less
The Southern Ocean Meridional Overturning Circulation: New observations of vertical mixing. The Southern Ocean and Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) play profound roles in Australian and global climate. However, we know little about how they will be affected by global warming. New velocity observations will tell us how the vertical mixing that contributes to the meridional overturning circulation, and ACC strength, change with the seasons and from year to year. The observations will also gi ....The Southern Ocean Meridional Overturning Circulation: New observations of vertical mixing. The Southern Ocean and Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC) play profound roles in Australian and global climate. However, we know little about how they will be affected by global warming. New velocity observations will tell us how the vertical mixing that contributes to the meridional overturning circulation, and ACC strength, change with the seasons and from year to year. The observations will also give us a better understanding of the oceanic and atmospheric processes that drive these changes. This new information will allow climate models to be better constrained so they can more accurately predict changes to Australian and global climate.Read moreRead less
Observations of remarkable eastward flows in the South Indian Ocean. The Indian Ocean drives much of the variability of Australian weather and rainfall and is rapidly evolving. Innovative new observations of remarkable eastward flows in the South Indian Ocean will be combined with models to understand these circulations in a region that has significant economic value for Australia.
Dust to the ocean: Does it really increase productivity? This project aims to investigate the relationship between dust deposition and marine productivity. This project will quantify dust deposition to the ocean and its chemical and ecological impact by using new geochemical techniques and novel approaches with autonomous ocean sensors. Expected outcomes of this project include improved estimates of dust deposition to the ocean and the development of globally-applicable methods for quantifying t ....Dust to the ocean: Does it really increase productivity? This project aims to investigate the relationship between dust deposition and marine productivity. This project will quantify dust deposition to the ocean and its chemical and ecological impact by using new geochemical techniques and novel approaches with autonomous ocean sensors. Expected outcomes of this project include improved estimates of dust deposition to the ocean and the development of globally-applicable methods for quantifying the link between dust and biology using profiling floats. This should provide significant benefits such as improved dust models used to predict future changes in nutrient deposition, with implications for predicting future ocean fish production and carbon uptake.Read moreRead less
Understanding multi-scale dynamics of eddies in the East Australian Current. This project aims to provide the first rigorous quantification of the complex dynamics of rotating eddies (the weather systems of the ocean) and fronts on scales ranging from metres to 100s of kilometres and hours to weeks in the East Australian Current System. This project is at the frontier of oceanographic research and will provide significant new understanding of the physical and biogeochemical dynamics of eddies an ....Understanding multi-scale dynamics of eddies in the East Australian Current. This project aims to provide the first rigorous quantification of the complex dynamics of rotating eddies (the weather systems of the ocean) and fronts on scales ranging from metres to 100s of kilometres and hours to weeks in the East Australian Current System. This project is at the frontier of oceanographic research and will provide significant new understanding of the physical and biogeochemical dynamics of eddies and their interactions across multiple spatio-temporal scales, revealing their impacts on productivity along Australia’s most populous coastline. This will provide significant benefits such as improved ocean forecasting and sustainable management of Australian marine industries and seafood sector, supporting economic growth. Read moreRead less
How topography brakes the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. This project aims to observe and simulate the mechanisms that slow the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. The Southern Ocean winds have increased over the last two decades while the transport of the world’s largest current remains steady or slightly decreasing. A possible explanation is negative feedback mechanisms between the winds and transport of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. This project will observe how eddies carry momentum from the ....How topography brakes the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. This project aims to observe and simulate the mechanisms that slow the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. The Southern Ocean winds have increased over the last two decades while the transport of the world’s largest current remains steady or slightly decreasing. A possible explanation is negative feedback mechanisms between the winds and transport of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. This project will observe how eddies carry momentum from the wind down to the sea floor and accelerate the deep currents that drag against the rough bottom to put the brakes on this current. Since this current affects Australian rainfall patterns and agricultural output, findings could inform public policy.Read moreRead less
Iron in the Antarctic sea ice zone and its role in the past and future climate. The Antarctic sea ice environment has remained poorly investigated for decades as it is difficult to access. Recent scientific advances have revealed that melting sea ice may provide a significant amount of the plant micro-nutrient iron to the Southern Ocean. Given that polar waters are iron-deficient and seasonal sea ice affects ~14 million square kilometres of ocean, the importance of iron fertilisation from deca ....Iron in the Antarctic sea ice zone and its role in the past and future climate. The Antarctic sea ice environment has remained poorly investigated for decades as it is difficult to access. Recent scientific advances have revealed that melting sea ice may provide a significant amount of the plant micro-nutrient iron to the Southern Ocean. Given that polar waters are iron-deficient and seasonal sea ice affects ~14 million square kilometres of ocean, the importance of iron fertilisation from decaying sea ice and its effect on global climate urgently need to be evaluated. This proposal aims at improving our understanding of Earth's complex system, and will inform future climate change policy in Australia.
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Changes in the ocean's biological pump: innovative models and diagnostics. This Project aims to quantify how the ocean’s biological pump, which exports newly formed organic matter into the ocean interior, responds to environmental change. The biological pump is a key control on the global carbon and oxygen cycles, and hence on the viability of marine life. New, efficient numerical models will be developed and analysed with highly innovative mathematical methods. Expected outcomes are optimised .... Changes in the ocean's biological pump: innovative models and diagnostics. This Project aims to quantify how the ocean’s biological pump, which exports newly formed organic matter into the ocean interior, responds to environmental change. The biological pump is a key control on the global carbon and oxygen cycles, and hence on the viability of marine life. New, efficient numerical models will be developed and analysed with highly innovative mathematical methods. Expected outcomes are optimised predictive models and a new understanding of the possible future evolutions of the ocean carbon cycle, acidification, and oxygenation. This should provide significant benefits such as predictions of future ocean health, identification of processes that are sensitive to change, and strategies for marine resource management.Read moreRead less