The Ocean's Vital Skin: Toward an Integrated Understanding of the Sea Surface Microlayer
Despite the huge extent of the ocean's surface, until now relatively little attention has been paid to the sea surface microlayer (SML) as the ultimate interface where heat, momentum and mass exchange between the ocean and the atmosphere takes place. Via the SML, large-scale environmental chang...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2017-05-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Marine Science |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmars.2017.00165/full |
| _version_ | 1811343514962755584 |
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| author | Anja Engel Hermann W. Bange Michael Cunliffe Susannah M. Burrows Gernot Friedrichs Luisa Galgani Luisa Galgani Hartmut Herrmann Norbert Hertkorn Martin Johnson Peter S. Liss Patricia K. Quinn Markus Schartau Alexander Soloviev Christian Stolle Christian Stolle Robert C. Upstill-Goddard Manuela van Pinxteren Birthe Zäncker |
| author_facet | Anja Engel Hermann W. Bange Michael Cunliffe Susannah M. Burrows Gernot Friedrichs Luisa Galgani Luisa Galgani Hartmut Herrmann Norbert Hertkorn Martin Johnson Peter S. Liss Patricia K. Quinn Markus Schartau Alexander Soloviev Christian Stolle Christian Stolle Robert C. Upstill-Goddard Manuela van Pinxteren Birthe Zäncker |
| author_sort | Anja Engel |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Despite the huge extent of the ocean's surface, until now relatively little attention has been paid to the sea surface microlayer (SML) as the ultimate interface where heat, momentum and mass exchange between the ocean and the atmosphere takes place. Via the SML, large-scale environmental changes in the ocean such as warming, acidification, deoxygenation, and eutrophication potentially influence cloud formation, precipitation, and the global radiation balance. Due to the deep connectivity between biological, chemical, and physical processes, studies of the SML may reveal multiple sensitivities to global and regional changes. Understanding the processes at the ocean's surface, in particular involving the SML as an important and determinant interface, could therefore provide an essential contribution to the reduction of uncertainties regarding ocean-climate feedbacks. This review identifies gaps in our current knowledge of the SML and highlights a need to develop a holistic and mechanistic understanding of the diverse biological, chemical, and physical processes occurring at the ocean-atmosphere interface. We advocate the development of strong interdisciplinary expertise and collaboration in order to bridge between ocean and atmospheric sciences. Although this will pose significant methodological challenges, such an initiative would represent a new role model for interdisciplinary research in Earth System sciences. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T19:31:37Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c638438ff094437887eac5cc3def4b7b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-7745 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T19:31:37Z |
| publishDate | 2017-05-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Marine Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-c638438ff094437887eac5cc3def4b7b2022-12-22T02:33:11ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Marine Science2296-77452017-05-01410.3389/fmars.2017.00165262783The Ocean's Vital Skin: Toward an Integrated Understanding of the Sea Surface MicrolayerAnja Engel0Hermann W. Bange1Michael Cunliffe2Susannah M. Burrows3Gernot Friedrichs4Luisa Galgani5Luisa Galgani6Hartmut Herrmann7Norbert Hertkorn8Martin Johnson9Peter S. Liss10Patricia K. Quinn11Markus Schartau12Alexander Soloviev13Christian Stolle14Christian Stolle15Robert C. Upstill-Goddard16Manuela van Pinxteren17Birthe Zäncker18GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research KielKiel, GermanyGEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research KielKiel, GermanyThe Marine Biological Association of the United KingdomPlymouth, United KingdomPacific Northwest National Laboratory (DOE)Richland, WA, United StatesKiel Marine Science, Institute of Physical Chemistry, Kiel UniversityKiel, GermanyGEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research KielKiel, GermanyDepartment of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Pharmacy, University of SienaSiena, ItalyChemistry of the Atmosphere, Leibniz-Institute for Tropospheric ResearchLeipzig, GermanyHelmholtz Zentrum München (HZ)Munich, GermanySchool of Environmental Sciences, University of East AngliaNorwich, United KingdomSchool of Environmental Sciences, University of East AngliaNorwich, United KingdomPacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)Seattle, WA, United StatesGEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research KielKiel, Germany0Department of Marine and Environmental Sciences, Halmos College of Natural Sciences and Oceanography, Nova Southeastern UniversityFort Lauderdale, FL, United States1Biological Oceanography, Leibniz-Institute for Baltic Sea Research WarnemuendeWarnemuende, Germany2Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment (ICBM), Carl von Ossietzky University OldenburgOldenburg, Germany3School of Marine Science and Technology, Newcastle UniversityNewcastle upon Tyne, United KingdomChemistry of the Atmosphere, Leibniz-Institute for Tropospheric ResearchLeipzig, GermanyGEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research KielKiel, GermanyDespite the huge extent of the ocean's surface, until now relatively little attention has been paid to the sea surface microlayer (SML) as the ultimate interface where heat, momentum and mass exchange between the ocean and the atmosphere takes place. Via the SML, large-scale environmental changes in the ocean such as warming, acidification, deoxygenation, and eutrophication potentially influence cloud formation, precipitation, and the global radiation balance. Due to the deep connectivity between biological, chemical, and physical processes, studies of the SML may reveal multiple sensitivities to global and regional changes. Understanding the processes at the ocean's surface, in particular involving the SML as an important and determinant interface, could therefore provide an essential contribution to the reduction of uncertainties regarding ocean-climate feedbacks. This review identifies gaps in our current knowledge of the SML and highlights a need to develop a holistic and mechanistic understanding of the diverse biological, chemical, and physical processes occurring at the ocean-atmosphere interface. We advocate the development of strong interdisciplinary expertise and collaboration in order to bridge between ocean and atmospheric sciences. Although this will pose significant methodological challenges, such an initiative would represent a new role model for interdisciplinary research in Earth System sciences.http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmars.2017.00165/fullsea surface microlayerair-sea exchangeneustonaerosolssurface filmsgas exchange |
| spellingShingle | Anja Engel Hermann W. Bange Michael Cunliffe Susannah M. Burrows Gernot Friedrichs Luisa Galgani Luisa Galgani Hartmut Herrmann Norbert Hertkorn Martin Johnson Peter S. Liss Patricia K. Quinn Markus Schartau Alexander Soloviev Christian Stolle Christian Stolle Robert C. Upstill-Goddard Manuela van Pinxteren Birthe Zäncker The Ocean's Vital Skin: Toward an Integrated Understanding of the Sea Surface Microlayer Frontiers in Marine Science sea surface microlayer air-sea exchange neuston aerosols surface films gas exchange |
| title | The Ocean's Vital Skin: Toward an Integrated Understanding of the Sea Surface Microlayer |
| title_full | The Ocean's Vital Skin: Toward an Integrated Understanding of the Sea Surface Microlayer |
| title_fullStr | The Ocean's Vital Skin: Toward an Integrated Understanding of the Sea Surface Microlayer |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Ocean's Vital Skin: Toward an Integrated Understanding of the Sea Surface Microlayer |
| title_short | The Ocean's Vital Skin: Toward an Integrated Understanding of the Sea Surface Microlayer |
| title_sort | ocean s vital skin toward an integrated understanding of the sea surface microlayer |
| topic | sea surface microlayer air-sea exchange neuston aerosols surface films gas exchange |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fmars.2017.00165/full |
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