“Capturing Event-driven Riverine Nutrient Delivery to Coastal Ocean Biology through Mesoscale Modeling”
Introduction by Melissa Eitzel
The Eel River discharges the most sediment for its watershed drainage area in the continental United States, delivering nutrients, organic matter and organisms to the coastal ocean of Northern California. It is dynamically event-driven by a Mediterranean climate, with low flow periods during the dry season, and discrete storm events that initialize and then reinvigorate river delivery during the wet season. This signal is distinctly out of phase with coastal upwelling, which generally dominates the coastal nutrient profiles from late spring to early fall by bringing cold, nutrient-rich water to the euphotic zone. The timing, frequency and magnitude of these winter storm events may be sensitive to changes in climate, which could in turn beget changes in coastal biological uptake as well. Ocean color data demonstrates significant interannual variability in the spatial distribution of phytoplankton blooms around Cape Mendocino, especially in the winter months when river nutrients have potential to be significant. A correlative study demonstrates connection between bloom timing to river discharge timing, and bloom location to the direction of the surface wind fields during the time that river nutrients are entering the coastal ocean. To study the ability of models to capture this behavior, a coupled modeling framework was produced that drives hydrology and ocean circulation models beneath a unified atmosphere of forcing data.
I would like to thank my family, friends, and all the amazing people I’ve had a chance to work with at Berkeley, who have encouraged and inspired me throughout my program.