Central California
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Shipboard studies of the biological-chemical-atmospheric coupling in the waters of Monterey Bay, those in the California Current and beyond. This region is well suited for these studies because of the large dynamic range in primary production. Inshore waters are affected by coastal upwelling and are highly productive. Productivity decreases rapidly as one travels offshore and after several hundred kilometers oligotrophic conditions of the subtropical gyre are found. Complex circulation is found in between these two regions where strong jets and eddies are prevalent. These jets and eddies tend to reoccur in the same general geographic location year after year and therefore there is significant but coherent alongshore variability in oceanographic conditions. The comparative study of subsurface consequences of the spatial variability in upper ocean productivity should provide valuable insight about the pathways of production export in the ocean.
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