| Summary: | Ocean Carbon & Biogeochemistry (OCB) Summer Workshop, Samuel H. Scripps Auditorium, Scripps Seaside Forum, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, July 1922, 2010 This year’s OCB summer workshop highlighted three interdisciplinary science themes: Arctic, low oxygen regions, and benthic-pelagic coupling. Within these themes, we were especially keen to address nitrogen cycling, ecological tipping points, and strengthened connections between experimentalists and modelers. Arctic: The Arctic is undergoing rapid changes in response to warming, accelerated melting of large ice sheets, and reductions in seasonal sea ice cover. Low Oxygen Regions: Many models are predicting a significant expansion of oxygen minimum zones under the IPCC “business-as-usual” scenario for anthropogenic CO2 emissions, which will affect marine productivity, carbon and nutrient cycling, and food webs. Benthic-Pelagic Coupling: Benthic and pelagic ecosystems are intimately linked by way of biogeochemical cycling and transformation. Benthic-pelagic coupling along continental shelves represents a significant unknown in coastal carbon budgets, and the physical, chemical, and biological processes driving organic carbon export and burial in the open ocean remain poorly characterized. National Science Foundation, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and Scripps Institution of Oceanography
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