Contrasting Under-Ice and Open-Water Phytoplankton Blooms, Chukchi Sea, Arctic, 2014

Over the last several decades, Arctic Ocean ice cover has become substantially thinner and more prone to melting, extending the period of open water. Associated with the loss of sea ice has been an increase in light penetration and a dramatic rise in the productivity of phytoplankton. The PIs' primary objectives are to determine the spatial distribution of large under-ice phytoplankton blooms on the Chukchi Shelf and the physical mechanisms that control them. The project proposed herein will utilize new data obtained from both remote instrumentation (e.g. moorings and satellites) and an interdisciplinary ship-based field program to gain a better understanding of the physical/chemical conditions that favor under-ice bloom development as well as the physiological adaptations that allow phytoplankton to flourish beneath sea ice. Outreach and education components of this project include participation in Stanford's Summer Program for Professional Development for Science Teachers and Stanford's School of Earth Sciences high school internship program, a compilation of professionally written short stories in the website by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution group, and incorporation of results by the Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory. This specific data set contrasts under-ice and open-water phytoplankton blooms in the Chukchi Sea.近数十年来，北冰洋海冰覆盖层显著变薄且更易消融，致使开阔水域的存续周期得以延长。海冰消退伴随光照穿透度提升，浮游植物（phytoplankton）的生产力亦出现大幅增长。本项目首席研究员（Principal Investigators, PIs）的核心目标，是明确楚科奇陆架（Chukchi Shelf）区域大型冰下浮游植物水华的空间分布特征，及其调控物理机制。本次拟推进的研究将依托远程观测设备（如锚系浮标与卫星）及跨学科船基实地考察项目获取的全新数据，以更全面地解析有利于冰下浮游植物水华发育的物理、化学环境条件，以及浮游植物在海冰下方繁盛所需的生理适应机制。本项目的科普与教育模块包括：参与斯坦福大学科学教师专业发展暑期项目与斯坦福大学地球科学学院高中生实习计划；由伍兹霍尔海洋研究所（Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution）团队在其官方网站汇编专业撰写的短篇科普故事；以及整合寒区研究与工程实验室（Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory）的相关研究成果。本数据集聚焦对比楚科奇海的冰下与开阔水域浮游植物水华。