• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
• /
• v.13 no.3
• /
• pp.190-199
• /
• 2008

To investigate hydrographic structure and characteristics of the tropical ocean in the eastern and the western Pacific, CTD(Conductivity-Temperature-Depth) data along $131^{\circ}W$ and $137^{\circ}-142^{\circ}E$ in July-August 2005 were analyzed. Sea surface temperature along $131.5^{\circ}W$ in summer is highest in the Equatorial Counter Current(ECC) because of the high-temperature water greater than $28^{\circ}C$ moving through the ECC from the western Pacific to the eastern Pacific in spring and summer. Based on the evidence of the presence of low salinity and high dissolved oxygen water in the North Equatorial Current(NEC), we suggested that the low salinity water moved from the Gulf of Panama to the east of Philippine along the North Equatorial Current(NEC). The South Equatorial Current(SEC) had the most saline water from surface to deep layer because the saline water from the Subtropical South Pacific Ocean moved to the north. The salinity minimum layer was observed at 500-1500 m depth along $131.5^{\circ}W$. The water mass with the salinity minimum layer in the north of $5^{\circ}N$ came from the North Pacific Intermediate Water(NPIW) and that in the south of $5^{\circ}N$ came from the Antarctic Intermediate Water(AAIW), which was more saline than the NPIW. Cyclonic cold eddy with a diameter of about 200km was found in $4-6^{\circ}N$. Sea surface temperature along $131.5^{\circ}W$ in the eastern Pacific was lower than along $137^{\circ}-142^{\circ}E$ in the western Pacific; on the other hand, sea surface salinity in the eastern Pacific was higher than in the western Pacific. Subsurface saline water from the Subtropical South Pacific Ocean was less saline in the eastern Pacific than in the western Pacific. Salinity and density(${\sigma}_{\theta}$) of the salinity minimum layer south of $14^{\circ}N$ was higher in the eastern Pacific than in the western Pacific.

• Ocean and Polar Research
• /
• v.33 no.1
• /
• pp.21-34
• /
• 2011

We determined potential meso-scale benthic-pelagic ecosystem coupling in the north equatorial Pacific by comparing surface chl-a concentration with sediment bacterial abundance and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) concentration (indication of active biomass). Water and sediment samples were latitudinally collected between 5 and $11^{\circ}N$ along $131.5^{\circ}W$. Physical water properties of this area are characterized with three major currents: North Equatorial Current (NEC), North Equatorial Count Current (NECC), and South Equatorial Current (SEC). The divergence and convergence of the surface water occur at the boundaries where these currents anti-flow. This low latitude area ($5{\sim}7^{\circ}N$) appears to show high pelagic productivity (mean phytoplankton biomass=$1266.0\;mgC\;m^{-2}$) due to the supplement of high nutrients from nutrient-enriched deep-water via vertical mixing. But the high latitude area ($9{\sim}11^{\circ}N$) with the strong stratification exhibits low surface productivity (mean phytoplankton biomass=$603.1\;mgC\;m^{-2}$). Bacterial cell number (BCN) and ATP appeared to be the highest at the superficial layer and reduced with depth of sediment. Latitudinally, sediment BCN from low latitude ($5{\sim}7^{\circ}N$) was $9.8{\times}10^8\;cells\;cm^{-2}$, which appeared to be 3-times higher than that from high latitude ($9{\sim}11^{\circ}N$; $2.9{\times}10^8\;cells\;cm^{-2}$). Furthermore, sedimentary ATP at the low latitude ($56.2\;ng\;cm^{-2}$) appeared to be much higher than that of the high latitude ($3.3\;ng\;cm^{-2}$). According to regression analysis of these data, more than 85% of the spatial variation of benthic microbial biomass was significantly explained by the phytoplankton biomass in surface water. Therefore, the results of this study suggest that benthic productivity in this area is strongly coupled with pelagic productivity.