Title Southern Benguela shelf and open ocean seasonal mean microphytoplankton proportion time series, 1997 to 2018
Project Bio-optical Investigation of Phytoplankton
Authors

Lamont, Tarron
Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment; role: Marine Scientist

Barlow, R.G.
Bayworld Centre for Research and Education; role: Marine Scientist

Brewin, R.J.W.
Plymouth Marine Laboratory; role: Marine Scientist

Publisher Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (2019)
Contributors

Contact Person: Lamont, Tarron
Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment; role: Marine Scientist; email: tlamont@dffe.gov.za

Abstract Reconstructed seasonal mean microphytoplankton proportion for SeaWiFS and MODIS-Aqua in the Southern Benguela (29-34.3°S;12-18.5°E) shelf and open ocean regions during austral summer, autumn, winter, and spring. Shelf and open ocean regions have been separated using the GEBCO 1000m isobath.
Methods A phytoplankton size-class model (Lamont et al. 2018, RSE 204, 617-631) was applied to standard monthly-averaged SeaWiFS and MODIS-Aqua Chlorophyll a concentrations, with a spatial resolution of 9km, to compute fractional contributions of microphytoplankton to the total chlorophyll a in Southern Benguela shelf and open ocean regions. The shelf and open ocean regions were separated using the 1000m GEBCO isobath. Seasonal means were computed by averaging data over a three-month period for each season, defined as austral summer (December, January, February), autumn (March, April, May), winter (June, July, August), and spring (September, October, November). Using the MODIS-Aqua data as the reference dataset, the SeaWiFS values were reconstructed (predicted) within the framework of a Generalized Linear Model, in order to remove the systematic bias between SeaWiFS and MODIS-Aqua values. This data has been processed and published as Lamont et al. (2019) JGR Oceans, 124, 1170-1195 (https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JC014334) - please see this paper for a more detailed methodology.
Data
Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Temporal extent 01 Jan 1997 – 01 Jan 2018
Geographic extent
200 km
Leaflet Tiles © Esri — Source: Esri, DeLorme, NAVTEQ, USGS, Intermap, iPC, NRCAN, Esri Japan, METI, Esri China (Hong Kong), Esri (Thailand), TomTom, 2012

Southern Benguela, Benguela Upwelling, South African West Coast, South East Atlantic Ocean

North: -29.0
South: -34.3
West: 12.0
East: 18.5

Keywords Agulhas and Somali Current Large Marine Ecosystems, ASCLME, BCLME, Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem, bio-optics, EBV: Ecosystem Function > Ecosystem phenology, EBV: Ecosystem Function > Primary productivity, EBV: Ecosystem Structure > Ecosystem distribution, EOV: Biology and Ecosystems > Dissolved organic carbon, microphytoplankton, phytoplankton biomass, remote sensing, SOUTH ATLANTIC OCEAN, Southern Benguela
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