Origin, dynamics and evolution of ocean garbage patches from observed surface drifters
Much of the debris in the near-surface ocean collects in so-called garbage patches where, due to convergence of the surface flow, the debris is trapped for decades to millennia. Until now, studies modelling the pathways of surface marine debris have not included release from coasts or factored in th...
Published in: | Environmental Research Letters |
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/044040 https://doaj.org/article/fbc9d661d94d4452aa23100fe9019b1a |
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:fbc9d661d94d4452aa23100fe9019b1a 2023-09-05T13:18:26+02:00 Origin, dynamics and evolution of ocean garbage patches from observed surface drifters Erik van Sebille Matthew H England Gary Froyland 2012-01-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/044040 https://doaj.org/article/fbc9d661d94d4452aa23100fe9019b1a EN eng IOP Publishing https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/044040 https://doaj.org/toc/1748-9326 doi:10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/044040 1748-9326 https://doaj.org/article/fbc9d661d94d4452aa23100fe9019b1a Environmental Research Letters, Vol 7, Iss 4, p 044040 (2012) marine debris ocean surface circulation surface drifting buoys Ekman dynamics Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Science Q Physics QC1-999 article 2012 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/044040 2023-08-13T00:37:44Z Much of the debris in the near-surface ocean collects in so-called garbage patches where, due to convergence of the surface flow, the debris is trapped for decades to millennia. Until now, studies modelling the pathways of surface marine debris have not included release from coasts or factored in the possibilities that release concentrations vary with region or that pathways may include seasonal cycles. Here, we use observational data from the Global Drifter Program in a particle-trajectory tracer approach that includes the seasonal cycle to study the fate of marine debris in the open ocean from coastal regions around the world on interannual to centennial timescales. We find that six major garbage patches emerge, one in each of the five subtropical basins and one previously unreported patch in the Barents Sea. The evolution of each of the six patches is markedly different. With the exception of the North Pacific, all patches are much more dispersive than expected from linear ocean circulation theory, suggesting that on centennial timescales the different basins are much better connected than previously thought and that inter-ocean exchanges play a large role in the spreading of marine debris. This study suggests that, over multi-millennial timescales, a significant amount of the debris released outside of the North Atlantic will eventually end up in the North Pacific patch, the main attractor of global marine debris. Article in Journal/Newspaper Barents Sea North Atlantic Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Barents Sea Pacific Environmental Research Letters 7 4 044040 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
marine debris ocean surface circulation surface drifting buoys Ekman dynamics Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Science Q Physics QC1-999 |
spellingShingle |
marine debris ocean surface circulation surface drifting buoys Ekman dynamics Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Science Q Physics QC1-999 Erik van Sebille Matthew H England Gary Froyland Origin, dynamics and evolution of ocean garbage patches from observed surface drifters |
topic_facet |
marine debris ocean surface circulation surface drifting buoys Ekman dynamics Environmental technology. Sanitary engineering TD1-1066 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Science Q Physics QC1-999 |
description |
Much of the debris in the near-surface ocean collects in so-called garbage patches where, due to convergence of the surface flow, the debris is trapped for decades to millennia. Until now, studies modelling the pathways of surface marine debris have not included release from coasts or factored in the possibilities that release concentrations vary with region or that pathways may include seasonal cycles. Here, we use observational data from the Global Drifter Program in a particle-trajectory tracer approach that includes the seasonal cycle to study the fate of marine debris in the open ocean from coastal regions around the world on interannual to centennial timescales. We find that six major garbage patches emerge, one in each of the five subtropical basins and one previously unreported patch in the Barents Sea. The evolution of each of the six patches is markedly different. With the exception of the North Pacific, all patches are much more dispersive than expected from linear ocean circulation theory, suggesting that on centennial timescales the different basins are much better connected than previously thought and that inter-ocean exchanges play a large role in the spreading of marine debris. This study suggests that, over multi-millennial timescales, a significant amount of the debris released outside of the North Atlantic will eventually end up in the North Pacific patch, the main attractor of global marine debris. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Erik van Sebille Matthew H England Gary Froyland |
author_facet |
Erik van Sebille Matthew H England Gary Froyland |
author_sort |
Erik van Sebille |
title |
Origin, dynamics and evolution of ocean garbage patches from observed surface drifters |
title_short |
Origin, dynamics and evolution of ocean garbage patches from observed surface drifters |
title_full |
Origin, dynamics and evolution of ocean garbage patches from observed surface drifters |
title_fullStr |
Origin, dynamics and evolution of ocean garbage patches from observed surface drifters |
title_full_unstemmed |
Origin, dynamics and evolution of ocean garbage patches from observed surface drifters |
title_sort |
origin, dynamics and evolution of ocean garbage patches from observed surface drifters |
publisher |
IOP Publishing |
publishDate |
2012 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/044040 https://doaj.org/article/fbc9d661d94d4452aa23100fe9019b1a |
geographic |
Barents Sea Pacific |
geographic_facet |
Barents Sea Pacific |
genre |
Barents Sea North Atlantic |
genre_facet |
Barents Sea North Atlantic |
op_source |
Environmental Research Letters, Vol 7, Iss 4, p 044040 (2012) |
op_relation |
https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/044040 https://doaj.org/toc/1748-9326 doi:10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/044040 1748-9326 https://doaj.org/article/fbc9d661d94d4452aa23100fe9019b1a |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/7/4/044040 |
container_title |
Environmental Research Letters |
container_volume |
7 |
container_issue |
4 |
container_start_page |
044040 |
_version_ |
1776199387733557248 |