Glider-based observations of CO2 in the Labrador Sea

• Published in: Ocean Science
• Main Authors: N. von Oppeln-Bronikowski, B. de Young, D. Atamanchuk, D. Wallace
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Copernicus Publications 2021
• Subjects: geo; envir; Newfoundland; Labrador Sea
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5194/os-17-1-2021; https://os.copernicus.org/articles/17/1/2021/os-17-1-2021.pdf; https://doaj.org/article/137c10bc6cd7406288f0282e23f4ddf2

Ocean gliders can provide high-spatial- and temporal-resolution data and target specific ocean regions at a low cost compared to ship-based measurements. An important gap, however, given the need for carbon measurements, is the lack of capable sensors for glider-based CO2 measurements. We need to develop robust methods to evaluate novel CO2 sensors for gliders. Here we present results from testing the performance of a novel CO2 optode sensor (Atamanchuk et al., 2014), deployed on a Slocum glider, in the Labrador Sea and on the Newfoundland Shelf. This paper (1) investigates the performance of the CO2 optode on two glider deployments, (2) demonstrates the utility of using the autonomous SeaCycler profiler mooring (Send et al., 2013; Atamanchuk et al., 2020) to improve in situ sensor data, and (3) presents data from moored and mobile platforms to resolve fine scales of temporal and spatial variability of O2 and pCO2 in the Labrador Sea. The Aanderaa CO2 optode is an early prototype sensor that has not undergone rigorous testing on a glider but is compact and uses little power. Our analysis shows that the sensor suffers from instability and slow response times (τ95>100 s), affected by different behavior when profiling through small (10 ∘C) changes in temperature over similar time intervals. We compare the glider and SeaCycler O2 and CO2 observations and estimate the glider data uncertainty as ± 6.14 and ± 44.01 µatm, respectively. From the Labrador Sea mission, we point to short timescales (<7 d) and distance (<15 km) scales as important drivers of change in this region.