Antarctic Phytoplankton Blooms and Organic Matter, 1992-1995

Davis Station, East Antarctica, was the site for monitoring phytoplankton biomass and species composition over three consecutive summer seasons from December to February, 1992-1995. The dataset identifies four distinct phytoplankton assemblages and examines factors influencing their variation, including ice break-out, water column conditions, and wind events. It was aggregated by the AU_AADC organization and last updated in February 1995.

Use Cases

• Modeling phytoplankton community succession based on identified species assemblages like Phaeocystis sp. and Thalassiosira dichotomica.
• Analyzing the impact of environmental drivers like fast ice break-out and water column stratification on bloom timing and biomass.
• Studying interannual variability in Antarctic coastal ecosystems based on the described dramatic year-to-year differences.
• Investigating the role of physical disturbances, such as strong winds introducing offshore water masses, on inshore bloom development.

Strengths

• Covers three consecutive summer seasons (1992-1995), providing a multi-year perspective.
• Identifies four distinct phytoplankton assemblages with dominant species, offering community structure insights.
• Examines multiple environmental factors (ice break-out, stratification, temperature, salinity, grazing, wind) for potential drivers.

Limitations

• Last updated 1995-02-28 23:59:59.999000; freshness should be verified.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

AU_AADC (Australian Antarctic Data Centre), via NASA EarthData.

Collection Method

Field monitoring at an inshore site near Davis Station, East Antarctica.

Time Range

December-February, 1992-1995.

Freshness

Last updated 1995-02-28 23:59:59.999000.

Geography

Inshore site near Davis Station, East Antarctica.