Expressions of Intent for International Polar Year 2007-2008 Activities

Expression of Interest Details

PROPOSAL INFORMATION

What is the impact of the decrease in sea ice, increase in UV radiation, and permafrost thaw on microbial biodiversity and biogeochemical fluxes in the Arctic ocean?  (Malina)

Outline
We currently witness in the Arctic: 1) a decrease in summer ice cover that exposes sea surface to solar radiation and physical forcings, 2) permafrost thawing and increased river runoff, both leading to an increase in the export to ocean of organic carbon previously sequestered in the Tundra, 3) an increase in ultraviolet radiation. These three phenomena favour a growing mineralization of organic carbon through photo-oxidation and bacterial activity, resulting in an amplification of the increase in atmospheric CO2. At the same time, the exposure of a larger fraction of ocean surface to sun light and the increase in nutrients brought by rivers lead to larger autotrophic production and sequestration of organic carbon. To determine and monitor the balance of these processes, we will conduct an extensive study in the Mackenzie River / Beaufort Sea system in July and August 2008 onboard the Canadian research ice-breaker CCGS Amundsen. The spatial distribution of organic carbon stocks (living and detrital) in the water column and sediments will be determined on the shelf and beyond. The magnitude and variability of organic carbon mineralization through photo-oxidation and bacterial activity, and production through photosynthesis will be determined. These targeted studies will allow the monitoring of these processes using remote sensing in the coming years and decades. A detailed study of microbial biodiversity will be conducted to describe the different typical communities and to anticipate their response to climate change. Diagnostic models of the studied processes (primary production, bacterial activity and light-driven mineralization of organic matter) will be combined with Global Climate Model outputs to assess the fate of the associated carbon fluxes during the next decades under different climate change scenarios. Additionally, a retrospective approach will be followed to partly answer the Malina questions, based on the analysis of geochemical proxies in the past 1000-y sediments.

What significant advance(s) in relation to the IPY themes and targets can be anticipated from this project?
Most of the major ongoing and predicted changes in the Arctic in response to climate variability (summer sea ice shrinkage, UV increase, permafrost thawing and increased freshwater input to ocean) will strongly affect the light regime in the ocean, as well as stocks of organic matter. Because light-matter interactions control many of the biogeochemical fluxes, we expect that these changes will lead to modifications of the carbon cycle. The major focus of the Malina project on light and carbon is unique. We believe that it will significantly improve our knowledge on the impact of climate change on biogeochemical cycles in the Arctic.

What international collaboration is involved in this project?
16 institutions from the following countries will be involved in Malina: France, Canada, USA and UK. The main rationale for cooperation is the combination of teams highly specialized on processes (mostly from France, UK and USA) with teams familiar with the study of these processes in the Arctic ocean (mostly from Canada).

FIELD ACTIVITY DETAILS

Geographical location(s) for the proposed field activities:
Continental shelf of the Mackenzie River in the Beaufort Sea. The choice of this study area is in part motivated by the particularly intensive research efforts during the last decades in this region carried out by Canada. Our ultimate goal is to extend our modelling effort to the whole Arctic basin.

Approximate timeframe(s) for proposed field activities:
Arctic: 06/08 – 08/08            
Antarctic: n/a

Significant facilities will be required for this project:
Ice-breaker, AUVs, instrumented moorings, satellites, corers and sediment traps. These facilities will be share with the IPY project Circumpolar Flaw Lead Study (no. 687) and the Canadian “Network of Centers of Excellence” Arcticnet.

Will the project leave a legacy of infrastructure?
One major legacy will be a set of tools for monitoring the studied processes using remote sensing techniques. These tools will be transferred to agencies in charge of global environment sustained monitoring, such as Eumetsat, a European GMES service, and/or NOAA.

How is it envisaged that the required logistic support will be secured?
Own national polar operator
National agency
Own support

Ship time on the Canadian ice-breaker CCGS Amundsen will be funded by all participants of the project, through national funding. All other facilities exist on the ship or in the participating laboratories (moorings, AUVs, Sediment traps, corers), or are distributed for free for research purpose (satellite data).

Has the project been "endorsed" at a national or international level?
Yes - Requests for endorsement have been submitted to the SOLAS and IMBER international programmes.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND STRUCTURE

Is the project a short-term expansion (over the IPY 2007-2008 timeframe) of an existing plan, programme or initiative or is it a new autonomous proposal?
Yes

Malina is tightly coordinated with the IPY project Circumpolar Flaw Lead (CFL) Study (no. 687) and the Canadian “Network of Centres of Excellence” Arcticnet. Both these Canadian activities are funded. Malina is nevertheless a new autonomous proposal.

How will the project be organised and managed?
Given the size of the project, the management will mostly be conducted by the PI, assisted by two engineers in charge of the logistics and data management. At least one general meeting per year will be organized, alternatively in France and Canada. Also, sub-groups on specific themes (remote sensing, hydrodynamics, biodiversity, paleoceanography, …) will get together on a regular basis in dedicated meeting or through web conferences.

What are the initial plans of the project for addressing the education, outreach and communication issues outlined in the Framework document?
Education in the frame of this project will be mostly carried out through training of many Ph.D. students and postdocs. Additionally, participants to Malina will contribute to the outreach efforts of the Canadian Projet Arcticnet (“School on Board).

What are the initial plans of the project to address data management issues (as outlined in the Framework document?
The database of the present project will be created at the institution of the Lead Applicant, where the French JGOFS/IMBER/SOLAS database is located and maintained. We will follow the data management scheme adopted for recent local projects such as Prosope and Biosope, which is fully compliant with the guidelines of IMBER and other international programmes.

How is it proposed to fund the project?
Part of the funding has been secured from CNES and CNRS in France. Proposals are under review by the French Imber programme (Cyber), by Nasa and NSF in the USA. More funding will be requested from the Agence Nationale de la Recherche in France, and from the European Space Agency. The Canadian contribution will come through the Arctinet and CFL projects.

Is there additional information you wish to provide?
None

PROPOSER DETAILS

Dr Marcel Babin
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique / U. Pierre et Marie Curie
Laboratoire d’Océanographie de Villefranche, B.P. 8
Villefranche-sur-Mer Cedex
06238
France

Tel: +33 4 93 76 37 12
Mobile: no
Fax: +33 6 93 76 37 39
Email:

Other project members and their affiliation