Surface primary producer phenology in Dease Strait, NU, Canada, examined using submersed oceanographic sensors and satellite remote sensing

Thinning sea ice cover and earlier melt in the Arctic impact primary producer (PP) phenology, causing earlier ice algal bloom termination and phytoplankton bloom commencement. However, logistic constraints limit capturing the complete seasonal evolution of PPs and their physical drivers. Here, we co...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Arctic Science
Main Authors: Kiran Yendamuri, Julienne Stroeve, Jens K. Ehn, William J. Williams, Vishnu Nandan, Brent G.T. Else, Alexander S. Komarov, Christina A. Braybrook, Mike Dempsey, C.J. Mundy
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
French
Published: Canadian Science Publishing 2024
Subjects:
Canadian Arctic
primary production
remote sensing
synthetic aperture radar
normalized difference index
Environmental sciences
GE1-350
Environmental engineering
TA170-171
Arctic
Canada
Dease Strait
Climate change
Phytoplankton
Sea ice
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1139/as-2023-0053
https://doaj.org/article/c86b19402f3342bbb2c2150ff043781b
Description
Summary:Thinning sea ice cover and earlier melt in the Arctic impact primary producer (PP) phenology, causing earlier ice algal bloom termination and phytoplankton bloom commencement. However, logistic constraints limit capturing the complete seasonal evolution of PPs and their physical drivers. Here, we combine spectral irradiance data from subsurface oceanographic moorings with synthetic aperture radar backscatter and meteorological variables to study light in Dease Strait, investigating its relation to timing and magnitude of surface PPs for 2017 and 2019. Ice algal blooms in 2017 and 2019 lasted 66 and 84 days, respectively, peaking within 2 days of snow melt onset. In 2019, lower temperatures and a deeper snowpack before snow melt extended the ice algal bloom. Melt pond formation increased light transmission, enabling a short, 6–7-day under-ice phytoplankton bloom in both years that was likely nutrient-limited. The 2019 phytoplankton bloom was less productive, possibly due to the longer ice algal bloom depleting surface nutrients. After ice break-up in 2019, a 31-day late-summer bloom occurred via wind-driven mixing. Our findings suggest that the combined remote sensing technique has novel applicability in other settings, providing insights into the changing state of PP phenology, and the need for long-term Arctic observations to discern regional climate change effects.

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