Joint Global Ocean Flux Study JGOFS

A major opportunity to test the use of " Th as a proxy for POC flux arose with the Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS). JGOFS had as a central goal a better understanding of the ocean carbon cycle, including the flux of POC leaving the euphotic zone. Process studies were carried out in the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Arabian Sea and Southern Ocean. " Th profiles were obtained as a part of each process study. 

An early attempt to resolve the discrepancy between the high values of Sugimura and Suzuki (1988) and more traditional analyses failed to reach a definitive conclusion (Williams, 1992). The start of the Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS) field program with the North Atlantic Bloom Experiment in 1989 put additional pressure on the various groups to resolve this issue quickly. The National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) funded a workshop held in Seattle in July 1991 to resolve the issue. 

The urgent need for nutrient standards was demonstrated during the recently completed World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE) and Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS) measurements which were made by different laboratories. The internal consistency of the nutrient data was evaluated by comparing measurements made in deep water (depth over 3500 m) at nearby stations on different cruises. If one assumes that nutrient concentrations in deep water at the same location should not... 

Uher G, Schebeske G, Barlow RG, Cummings DG, Mantoura RFC, Rapsomanikis SR, Andreae MO (2000) Distribution and air-sea gas exchange of dimethyl sulphide at the European western continental margin. Mar Chem 69 277-300 UNESCO (1994) Protocols for the Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS). Core Measurements, Scientific committee on Oceanic Research Manual and Guides 29 170... 

Knap, A., Michaels, A., Close, A., Ducklow, H., and Dickson, A. (1996). Protocols for the Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS) core measurements. UNESCO, Paris. JGOFS Report No. 19,... 

Fasham, M.I.R., Balino, B.M. and Bowles, M.C. (eds) (2001) A New Vision of Ocean Biogeochemistry After a Decade of the Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS), Ambio, Special Report No. 10, The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Uddevalla. 

Scientists who study biogeochemistry usually consider the cycling of materials through the different parts of the system. To do this, they deal with reservoirs of materials and the fluxes of a substance from one reservoir to another. For example, they examine reservoirs such as the surface ocean water versus the deep ocean water, or the transfer of masses of materials per unit time (fluxes). An example of this kind of approach to biogeochemical cycles in the ocean can be seen in the Joint Global Ocean Flux Study (JGOFS) results, where the reservoirs represented are the atmosphere, lithosphere, terrestrial (land-based) biosphere, surface ocean, phytoplankton, and deep ocean. The... 

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