Publication Date:
2022-05-25
Description:
Author Posting. © Elsevier B.V., 2009. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of Elsevier B.V. for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Journal of Marine Systems 76 (2009): 113-133, doi:10.1016/j.jmarsys.2008.05.010.
Description:
Depth-integrated primary productivity (PP) estimates obtained from satellite
ocean color based models (SatPPMs) and those generated from biogeochemical ocean
general circulation models (BOGCMs) represent a key resource for biogeochemical and
ecological studies at global as well as regional scales. Calibration and validation of these
PP models are not straightforward, however, and comparative studies show large
differences between model estimates. The goal of this paper is to compare PP estimates
obtained from 30 different models (21 SatPPMs and 9 BOGCMs) to a tropical Pacific PP
database consisting of ~1000 14C measurements spanning more than a decade (1983-
1996). Primary findings include: skill varied significantly between models, but
performance was not a function of model complexity or type (i.e. SatPPM vs. BOGCM);
nearly all models underestimated the observed variance of PP, specifically yielding too
few low PP (〈 0.2 gC m-2d-2) values; more than half of the total root-mean-squared
model-data differences associated with the satellite-based PP models might be accounted
for by uncertainties in the input variables and/or the PP data; and the tropical Pacific
database captures a broad scale shift from low biomass-normalized productivity in the
1980s to higher biomass-normalized productivity in the 1990s, which was not
successfully captured by any of the models. This latter result suggests that interdecadal
and global changes will be a significant challenge for both SatPPMs and BOGCMs.
Finally, average root-mean-squared differences between in situ PP data on the equator at
140°W and PP estimates from the satellite-based productivity models were 58% lower
than analogous values computed in a previous PP model comparison six years ago. The
success of these types of comparison exercises is illustrated by the continual modification
and improvement of the participating models and the resulting increase in model skill.
Description:
This research was supported by a grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Agency
Ocean Biology and Biogeochemistry program (NNG06GA03G), as well as by numerous
other grants to the various participating investigators
Keywords:
Primary production
;
Modeling
;
Remote sensing
;
Satellite ocean color
;
Statistical analysis
;
Tropical Pacific Ocean (15°N to 15°S and 125°E to 95°W)
Repository Name:
Woods Hole Open Access Server
Type:
Preprint
Format:
application/pdf
Permalink
