Editor's Summary
7 December 2006
Warm colours
The SeaWiFS instrument on board the OrbView-2 satellite has accumulated a unique series of high-resolution colour measurements of the world's oceans during the past decade. Ocean colour reflects the abundance of photosynthetic phytoplankton in surface waters, which in turn is a measure of ocean productivity on a global scale. Comparison with environmental factors reveals a close link between ocean productivity and global climate trends during this period, with a notable reduction in ocean productivity during the post-1999 period of warming. This dataset will provide important background on how future climate change can alter marine food webs.
News and Views: Oceanography: Plankton in a warmer world
Satellite data show that phytoplankton biomass and growth generally decline as the oceans' surface waters warm up. Is this trend, seen over the past decade, a harbinger of the future for marine ecosystems?
Scott C. Doney
doi:10.1038/444695a
Letter: Climate-driven trends in contemporary ocean productivity
Michael J. Behrenfeld, Robert T. O'Malley, David A. Siegel, Charles R. McClain, Jorge L. Sarmiento, Gene C. Feldman, Allen J. Milligan, Paul G. Falkowski, Ricardo M. Letelier and Emmanuel S. Boss
doi:10.1038/nature05317
First paragraph | Full Text | PDF (543K) | Supplementary information
