Identification

Title

The utility of simulated ocean chlorophyll observations: A case study with the Chlorophyll Observation Simulator Package (version 1) in CESMv2.2

Abstract

For several decades, a suite of satellite sensors has enabled us to study the global spatiotemporal distribution of phytoplankton through remote sensing of chlorophyll. However, the satellite record has extensive missing data, partially due to cloud cover; regions characterized by the highest phytoplankton abundance are also some of the cloudiest. To quantify potential sampling biases due to missing data, we developed a satellite simulator for ocean chlorophyll in the Community Earth System Model (CESM) that mimics what a satellite would detect if it were present in the model-generated world. Our Chlorophyll Observation Simulator Package (ChlOSP) generates synthetic chlorophyll observations at model runtime. ChlOSP accounts for missing data - due to low light, sea ice, and cloud cover - and it can implement swath sampling. Here, we introduce this new tool and present a preliminary study focusing on long timescales. Results from a 50-year pre-industrial control simulation of CESM-ChlOSP suggest that missing data impact the apparent mean state and variability of chlorophyll. The simulated observations exhibit a nearly - 20 % difference in global mean chlorophyll compared with the standard model output, which is the same order of magnitude as the projected change in chlorophyll by the end of the century. Additionally, missing data impact the apparent seasonal cycle of chlorophyll in subpolar regions. We highlight four potential future applications of ChlOSP: (1) refined model tuning; (2) evaluating chlorophyll-based net primary productivity (NPP) algorithms; (3) revised time to emergence of anthropogenic chlorophyll trends; and (4) a test bed for the assessment of gap-filling approaches for missing satellite chlorophyll data.

Resource type

document

Resource locator

Unique resource identifier

code

https://n2t.org/ark:/85065/d7bc43q6

codeSpace

Dataset language

eng

Spatial reference system

code identifying the spatial reference system

Classification of spatial data and services

Topic category

geoscientificInformation

Keywords

Keyword set

keyword value

Text

originating controlled vocabulary

title

Resource Type

reference date

date type

publication

effective date

2016-01-01T00:00:00Z

Geographic location

West bounding longitude

East bounding longitude

North bounding latitude

South bounding latitude

Temporal reference

Temporal extent

Begin position

End position

Dataset reference date

date type

publication

effective date

2024-02-06T00:00:00Z

Frequency of update

Quality and validity

Lineage

Conformity

Data format

name of format

version of format

Constraints related to access and use

Constraint set

Use constraints

Limitations on public access

None

Responsible organisations

Responsible party

contact position

OpenSky Support

organisation name

UCAR/NCAR - Library

full postal address

PO Box 3000

Boulder

80307-3000

email address

opensky@ucar.edu

web address

http://opensky.ucar.edu/

name: homepage

responsible party role

pointOfContact

Metadata on metadata

Metadata point of contact