A mechanistic study of bio-physical interaction and air-sea carbon transfer in the Southern Ocean

Current generation of coupled climate models, that are used to make climate projections, lack the resolution to adequately resolve ocean mesoscale (10 - 100km) processes, exhibiting significant biases in the ocean carbon uptake. Mesoscale processes include many features including jets, fronts and eddies that are crucial for bio-physical interactions, air-sea CO2 exchange and the supply of iron to the surface ocean. This modeling project will support the eddy resolving regional simulations to understand the mechanisms that drives bio-physical interaction and air-sea exchange of carbon dioxide.