Space technology center for study of dynamic processes and oceanic fluxes on global scale

• Grant number: 01/06921-3
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Young Investigators Grants
• Start date: February 01, 2002
• End date: March 31, 2006
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Oceanography - Physical Oceanography
• Principal Investigator: Paulo Simionatto Polito
• Grantee: Paulo Simionatto Polito
• Host Institution: Instituto Oceanográfico (IO). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

We propose an emergent center for the study of the dynamic and thermodynamic of the oceans and their connections with the meteorology, biological and chemical oceanography, using global data from multiple sensors on board oceanographic satellites.We will examine global data containing the height anomaly, temperature and wind on the sea surface, concentration of chlorophyll and vapor integrated in the atmosphere. Digital filters will be used to separate the original measurements in various bands of the spatio-temporal spectrum associated with several dynamic regimes. This center is characterized by interdisciplinarity. This is evident in the specific aspects of the four main topics of this proposal. The first of them is the study of the ocean-atmosphere interaction on various spatio-temporal scales. In the second topic the influence of dynamic and thermodynamic regimes on the concentration of phytoplankton is dealt with using a similar methodology to that of the first topic. The third part deals with various aspects of the heat balance and includes estimates of the flux on the surface, of the heat stored and of the Ekman heat flux. The fourth topic presents an innovative method for calculating the flux of CO2 from the atmosphere to the ocean due to the new primary production, based on altimetry data. (AU)