Description: Time-series studies of arctic marine ecosystems are rare. This is not surprising since polar regions are largely only accessible by means of expensive modern infrastructure and instrumentation. In 1999, the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz-Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) established the LTER (Long-Term Ecological Research) observatory HAUSGARTEN crossing the Fram Strait at about 79° N. Multidisciplinary investigations covering all parts of the open-ocean ecosystem are carried out at a total of 21 permanent sampling sites in water depths ranging between 250 and 5500 m. From the outset, repeated sampling in the water column and at the deep seafloor during regular expeditions in summer months was complemented by continuous year-round sampling and sensing using autonomous instruments in anchored devices (i.e., moorings and free-falling systems). The central HAUSGARTEN station at 2500 m water depth in the eastern Fram Strait serves as an experimental area for unique biological in situ experiments at the seafloor, simulating various scenarios in changing environmental settings. Long-term ecological research at the HAUSGARTEN observatory revealed a number of interesting temporal trends in numerous biological variables from the pelagic system to the deep seafloor. Contrary to common intuition, the entire ecosystem responded exceptionally fast to environmental changes in the upper water column. Major variations were associated with a Warm-Water-Anomaly evident in surface waters in eastern parts of the Fram Strait between 2005 and 2008. However, even after 15 years of intense time-series work at HAUSGARTEN, we cannot yet predict with complete certainty whether these trends indicate lasting alterations due to anthropologically-induced global environmental changes of the system, or whether they reflect natural variability on multiyear time-scales, for example, in relation to decadal oscillatory atmospheric processes.

Description: The low surface nitrate concentration and high atmospheric iron input in the tropical eastern North Atlantic provide beneficial conditions for N-2 fixation. Varying abundances of diazotrophs have been observed and an Fe- and P-colimitation of N-2 fixation was reported in this ocean region. It is however unclear, how different limiting factors control the temporal variability of N-2 fixation and what the role of Fe-limitation is in a region with high fluxes of dust deposition. To study the environmental controls on N-2 fixation, an one-dimensional ecosystem model is coupled with a physical model for the Tropical Eastern North Atlantic Times-series Station (TENATSO), north of the Cape Verde Islands. The model describes diazotrophy according to the physiology of Trichodesmium, taking into account a growth dependence on light, temperature, iron, dissolved inorganic (DIP) and organic phosphorus (DOP). The modelled total Chl a is compared with satellitederived total Chl a and modelled Trichodesmium (Tri) compared with satellite-derived cyanobacterial Chl a as well as with High Performance Liquid Chromatography data. Model results show a complex pattern of competitive as well as mutually beneficial interactions between diazotrophs and non-diazotrophic phytoplankton. High DOP availability after spring blooms of non-diazotrophic phytoplankton and the ability of Trichodesmium to take up DOP are crucial for allowing a maximal abundance of Tri in autumn. Part of the reactive nitrogen newly fixed by diazotrophs is directly excreted or released through mortality, significantly fuelling the growth of non-diazotrophic phytoplankton in autumn and winter. Fe consumption by non-diazotrophic phytoplankton earlier in the year makes Fe limitation of Tri in late summer more acute, whereas Tri growth in surface waters reduces phytoplankton abundance deeper in the water column by light limitation. Overall, the atmospheric iron input at the TENATSO site is required to enable diazotrophic growth and to support the observed abundance of non-diazotrophic phytoplankton

Description: Extensive analyses of particulate lipids and lipid classes were conducted to gain insight into lipid production and related factors along the biogeochemical provinces of the Eastern Atlantic Ocean. Data are supported by particulate organic carbon (POC), chlorophyll a (Chl a), phaeopigments, Chl a concentrations and carbon content of eukaryotic micro-, nano- and picophytoplankton, including cell abundances for the latter two and for cyanobacteria and prokaryotic heterotrophs. We focused on the productive ocean surface (2 m depth and deep Chl a maximum (DCM)). Samples from the deep ocean provided information about the relative reactivity and preservation potential of particular lipid classes. Surface and DCM particulate lipid concentrations (3.5–29.4 μg L−1) were higher than in samples from deep waters (3.2–9.3 μg L−1) where an increased contribution to the POC pool was observed. The highest lipid concentrations were measured in high latitude temperate waters and in the North Atlantic Tropical Gyral Province (13–25°N). Factors responsible for the enhanced lipid synthesis in the eastern Atlantic appeared to be phytoplankton size (micro, nano, pico) and the low nutrient status with microphytoplankton having the most expressed influence in the surface and eukaryotic nano- and picophytoplankton in the DCM layer. Higher lipid to Chl a ratios suggest enhanced lipid biosynthesis in the nutrient poorer regions. The various lipid classes pointed to possible mechanisms of phytoplankton adaptation to the nutritional conditions. Thus, it is likely that adaptation comprises the replacement of membrane phospholipids by non-phosphorus containing glycolipids under low phosphorus conditions. The qualitative and quantitative lipid compositions revealed that phospholipids were the most degradable lipids, and their occurrence decreased with increasing depth. In contrast, wax esters, possibly originating from zooplankton, survived downward transport probably due to the fast sinking rate of particles (fecal pellets). The important contribution of glycolipids in deep waters reflected their relatively stable nature and degradation resistance. A lipid-based proxy for the lipid degradative state (Lipolysis Index) suggests that many lipid classes were quite resistant to degradation even in the deep ocean.

Description: Phytoplankton play a central role in the planetary cycling of important elements and compounds. Understanding how phytoplankton are responding to climate change is consequently a major question in Earth Sciences. Monitoring phytoplankton is key to answering this question. Satellite remote sensing of ocean colour is our only means of monitoring phytoplankton in the entire surface ocean at high temporal and large spatial scales, and the continuous ocean-colour data record is now approaching a length suitable for addressing questions around climate change, at least in some regions. Yet, developing ocean-colour algorithms for climate change studies requires addressing issues of ambiguity in the ocean-colour signal. For example, for the same chlorophyll-a concentration (Chl-a) of phytoplankton, the colour of the ocean can be different depending on the type of phytoplankton present. One route to tackle the issue of ambiguity is by enriching the ocean-colour data with information on sea surface temperature (SST), a good proxy of changes in three phytoplankton size classes (PSCs) independent of changes in total Chl-a, a measure of phytoplankton biomass. Using a global surface insitu dataset of HPLC (high performance liquid chromatography) pigments, size-fractionated filtration data, and concurrent satellite SST spanning from 1991 to 2021, we re-tuned, validated and advanced an SST-dependent three-component model that quantifies the relationship between total Chl-a and Chl-a associated with the three PSCs (pico-, nano- and microplankton). Similar to previous studies, striking dependencies between model parameters and SST were captured, which were found to improve model performance significantly. These relationships were applied to 40 years of monthly composites of satellite SST, and significant trends in model parameters were observed globally, in response to climate warming. Changes in these parameters highlight issues in estimating long-term trends in phytoplankton biomass (Chl-a) from ocean colour using standard empirical algorithms, which implicitly assume a fixed relationship between total Chl-a and Chl-a of the three size classes. The proposed ecological model will be at the centre of a new ocean-colour modelling framework, designed for investigating the response of phytoplankton to climate change, described in subsequent parts of this series of papers.

Description: EnMAP (Environmental Mapping and Analysis Program) is a high-resolution imaging spectroscopy remote sensing mission that was successfully launched on April 1st, 2022. Equipped with a prism-based dualspectrometer, EnMAP performs observations in the spectral range between 418.2 nm and 2445.5 nm with 224 bands and a high radiometric and spectral accuracy and stability. EnMAP products, with a ground instantaneous field-of-view of 30 m×30 m at a swath width of 30 km, allow for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of surface variables from frequently and consistently acquired observations on a global scale. This article presents the EnMAP mission and details the activities and results of the Launch and Early Orbit and Commissioning Phases until November 1st, 2022. The mission capabilities and expected performances for the operational Routine Phase are provided for existing and future EnMAP users.