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A remarkable chlorophyll‐a concentration (Chl, a proxy of phytoplankton biomass) plume can be noticed on remotely sensed ocean color observations at the boundary separating the equatorial mesotrophic from the subtropical oligotrophic waters in the central South Pacific Ocean. This prominent biological feature is known as the island mass effect of the Marquesas archipelago. Waters surrounding these islands present high macronutrient concentrations but an iron depletion. In this study, the origin of Chl enhancement is investigated using a modeling approach. Four simulations based on identical physical and biogeochemical forcings but with different iron sources are conducted and analyzed. Only simulations considering an iron input from the island sediments present similar patterns (despite being too weak) of vertical and horizontal Chl distributions as compared to biogeochemical‐Argo profiling float and satellite observations. In addition, simulations with no other iron input than the boundary forcings reveal the relative importance of remote processes in modulating the seasonal pattern of Chl around the archipelago through horizontal advection of nutrient‐rich waters from the equator toward the archipelago and vertical mixing uplifting deep nutrient‐rich waters toward the upper lit layer. Key Points: Characterizing the biological enhancement observed in the Marquesas archipelago using a coupled physical biogeochemical ocean modelRevealing the importance of iron in the Marquesas island mass effect [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The South Pacific Subtropical Gyre (SPSG) is a vast and remote area where large uncertainties on variability in phytoplankton biomass and production remain due to the lack of biogeochemical in situ observations. In such oligotrophic environments, ecosystems are predominantly controlled by nutrients depletion in surface waters. However, this oligotrophic character can be disturbed in the vicinity of islands where enhancement of biological activity is known to occur (i.e. the island mass effect, IME). This study mainly focuses on in situ observations showing that an IME can be evidenced leeward of Tahiti (17.7° S-149.5° W), French Polynesia. Concomitant physical and biogeochemical observations collected with two Biogeochemical-Argo (BGC-Argo) profiling floats from April 2015 to November 2016 are used to investigate the dynamics of phytoplankton biomass. The first float has a transit of more than 1000 km westward of Tahiti (open ocean conditions) while the second one remained in the Tahitian wake (around 45 km from the island coasts). In the oligotrophic central SPSG, the wintertime increase in upper layer chlorophyll a concentration is likely due to photoacclimation process. Vertical observations show a light-driven deepening of the deep chlorophyll maximum (DCM) from winter to summer, consistently with previous descriptions. At the opposite, within the Tahitian wake, the DCM temporary widens during late spring in association with a biological enhancement in the upper layer. Combining in situ measurements with meteorological data along the Tahiti coasts, Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model outputs and satellite-derived products (i.e., horizontal currents and associated fronts), the physical mechanisms involved in the disturbance of phytoplankton seasonal cycle in the Tahitian wake have been investigated. This disturbance results from the concomitant occurrence of strong precipitations and a zone of weak currents leeward Tahiti. We conjecture that the land drainage induces a significant supply of nitrate in the ocean upper layer (down to ~ 100 m) while a zone of weak currents in the southwestern zone behind Tahiti forms an accumulation zone, hence allowing phytoplankton growth up to 20 km away from the coastlines. Moreover, bio-optical measurements suggest that the composition of phytoplankton community could differ in the Tahitian wake vs. the open ocean area. Finally, in addition to extending information to the water column, only BGC-Argo floats could provide biogeochemical measurements in the SPSG region when clouds prevent the use of remote sensing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The South Pacific Subtropical Gyre (SPSG) is a vast and remote oceanic system where the variability in phytoplankton biomass and production is still largely uncertain due to the lack of in situ biogeochemical observations. The SPSG is an oligotrophic environment where the ecosystem is controlled predominantly by nutrient depletion in surface waters. However, this dynamic is altered in the vicinity of islands where increased biological activity occurs (i.e. the island mass effect, IME). This study mainly focuses on in situ observations which show evidence of an IME leeward of Tahiti (17.7°S - 149.5°W), French Polynesia. Physical and biogeochemical observations collected with two Biogeochemical-Argo profiling floats are used to investigate the dynamics of phytoplankton biomass. Data from the first float, drifting from April 2015 to November 2016 over >1000 km westward of Tahiti, describe the open ocean conditions. The second float, deployed leeward of Tahiti in October 2015, stayed within 45 km off Tahiti for three months before it stopped communicating. In the oligotrophic central SPSG, our observations show that the deepening of the deep chlorophyll maximum (DCM) from winter to summer is light-driven and that the wintertime increase in chlorophyll a concentration in the upper layer is likely to be due to the process of photoacclimation, consistent with previous observations in oligotrophic environments. In contrast, leeward of Tahiti, the DCM widens toward the surface during late spring in association with a biological enhancement in the upper layer. Using Biogeochemical-Argo data, meteorological data from Tahiti, Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model outputs and satellite-derived products (i.e., horizontal currents and associated fronts), the physical mechanisms involved in producing this biological enhancement leeward of Tahiti have been investigated. The IME occurs during a period of strong precipitation and in a zone of weak currents downstream of the island. We conjecture that the land drainage induces a significant supply of nitrate in the ocean upper layer (down to ~100 m) while a zone of weak currents in the southwestern zone behind Tahiti allows an accumulation zone to form, hence increasing phytoplankton growth up to 20 km away from the coastlines. A bio-optical-based community index suggests that the composition of the phytoplankton community differs leeward of Tahiti from that in the open ocean area, with more microphytoplankton within the IME, which is associated with an increase in the carbon export to the deeper ocean. • A biological enhancement is observed leeward Tahiti from a Biogeochemical-Argo float. • Observed nitrate increase in the upper-lit layer likely results from land drainage. • Phytoplankton community composition leeward Tahiti probably differs from open ocean. • The open ocean summer deepening of the deep chlorophyll maximum is light-driven. • The wintertime increase in surface chlorophyll results from photoacclimation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More specifically, the phytoplankton products will consist of global 4D fields of key phytoplankton products, namely EOVs of phytoplankton chlorophyll biomass and diversity, the latter being expressed as chlorophyll contribution of several phytoplankton groups (PFTs). International Conference on Marine Data and Information Systems 12-14 Aprile, 2021- Online 27 Blue-Cloud Demonstrator: A machine learning approach to derive plankton biomass and diversity products from the Global Ocean. [Extracted from the article]