Download and Bering Sea Ecosystem Study (BEST)

Ecosystem Studies of Sub-Arctic Seas
(ESSAS)
and
Bering Sea Ecosystem Study (BEST)
A Basis for Cooperative Norwegian - United
States Research on Sustainable Marine
Ecosystems
George L. Hunt, Jr.
University of California, Irvine
Goal of ESSAS
The goal of the ESSAS Program is to
compare, quantify and predict the
impact of climate variability on the
productivity and sustainability of SubArctic marine ecosystems.
Goal of BEST
The goal of BEST is to understand
and predict the effects of climate
change on eastern Bering Sea
marine ecosystems and their ability
to support sustainable harvests.
Characteristics of Sub-Arctic
Seas
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High latitude Seas
Strong Climate Change Signal
Affect Water Exchange with Arctic
Seasonal Sea Ice Impacts
Short Growing Seasons
Simple Ecosystems
Important Commercial and Subsistence
Fisheries
PDO and AO Interactions in
North Pacific
Daily temperature 1 Jan 2003 at 1000 m
Overland PMEL
The Barents Sea
°C
From H. Loeng and G. Ottersen
North Atlantic Air Pressure Patterns
Atlantic Winter Air Pressure (SLP, from NCEP data)
NAO-
NAO+
© Tore Furevik ,BCCR and Geophysical Institute, University of Bergen, Norway.
Year-class Abundance of Cod
Abundance
Low
Medium High
Cold Years
35%
7%
1%
Warm Years
31%
14%
12%
From H. Loeng and G. Ottersen
Major Research Questions
• How will the External Forcing Functions
be Affected by Climate Change?
• How will Changes in the External Forcing
Mechanisms Affect Bio-Physical
Coupling?
• How will Changes in Bio-Physical Coupling
Influence Biological Interactions?