Pelagic zone | EPFL Graph Search

The pelagic zone consists of the water column of the open ocean and can be further divided into regions by depth. The word pelagic is derived . The pelagic zone can be thought of as an imaginary cylinder or water column between the surface of the sea and the bottom. Conditions in the water column change with depth: pressure increases; temperature and light decrease; salinity, oxygen, micronutrients (such as iron, magnesium and calcium) all change. Somewhat analogous to stratification in the Earth's atmosphere, but depending on how deep the water is, the water column can be divided vertically into up to five different layers (illustrated in the diagram). Marine life is affected by bathymetry (underwater topography) such as the seafloor, shoreline, or a submarine seamount, as well as by proximity to the boundary between the ocean and the atmosphere at the ocean surface, which brings light for photosynthesis, predation from above, and wind stirring up waves and setting currents in mot

Competition between cooling and shortwave radiation in shaping near-surface convection in pelagic waters of Lake Geneva

Hugo Cruz

When lake surface waters above the temperature of maximum density 4◦C cools, the verysurface fluid parcels become denser than their neighbours below. The latter process leads to a gravitationally unstable density distribution which may trigger ‘free convection’, i.e. the upper denser waters look for their equilibrium position somewhere down in the water column. This phenomenon usually occurs at night time, when the atmosphere is colder than surface waters. However, during daytime, it may happen that the lake surface cools—releasing heat to the atmosphere—while shortwave radiation penetrates through upper waters. In this scenario, the near surface waters of the photic zone can host an unstable layer due to the net surface cooling, whereas waters beneath it experience radiative heating and gravitational stabilization. Here, we investigate the competition between shortwave radiation and surface cooling when wind is low or negligible. Thus, depending on the relative intensity of surface cooling and shortwave radiation, the upper water column undergoes different gravitationally unstable density distributions and potentially convective regions. The objective of this Master Project is to investigate, describe, and characterise such convective regimes. To do so, the heat equation controlling temperature evolution of the upper water column subject to surface cooling and penetrative radiative heating is investigated. In parallel with in-situ observations, mathematical and numerical modelling allow to understand the phenomenon taking place. The results allow to infer how the relative importance of surface cooling and penetrating shortwave radiation may affect vertical heat and mass transfer within the lake and between the lake and the atmosphere.

2021

An evaluation of surface micro and meso plastic pollution in pelagic ecosystems of western Mediterranean Sea

Luiz Felippe De Alencastro, Florian Faure, Pascal Hagmann

In the 90’s, the discovery of high concentrations of plastic debris in the oceans generated interest and concern of general public as well as scientific community. Since, the accumulation of plastic debris in the North Pacific and North Atlantic gyres has been widely reported. Surprisingly, only few quantitative studies exist concerning the Mediterranean Sea. The purpose of this study was to examine the distribution, abundance and characteristics of surface micro (size 0.33 – 5.0 mm) and meso (size 5.0 – 50 mm) plastic debris, as compared to the abundance of organic material, in the western Mediterranean Sea. 41 samples have been collected during 2 cruises in September 2011 and August 2012 in regions distributed between positions 38-44°N and 001-010°E (Gulf of Lion, Eastern Spanish coast, Balearic Islands, Sardinia, Corsica). Sample collection was performed using a surface net tow of 330 μm mesh size. Samples were sieved to separate particles smaller than 5 mm from larger ones; plastic pieces were extracted from the plankton and organic matter, and sorted in 6 categories: fragments, pellets, thin films, foams, lines and others (tar, etc.). Each were counted and weighted, as was the organic matter once dried. The concentrations of micro-plastic debris were measured in term of particles number and particles mass per surface unit. The average values of 130’000 parts/km2 and 58’000 mg/km2, respectively were measured, with highest concentrations reaching values superior to 420’000 parts/km2 and 140’000 mg/km2. A qualitative analysis mainly revealed the presence of fragments (77% in mass), but also thin films (13%), foams (7%), pellets (2%) and lines (2%). The average ratio of micro-plastic mass to dry organic material mass has been measured at 1.04. A fraction of the samples was collected in low wind conditions (u10 < 4 m/s), while the other part was collected under medium wind conditions (4 ≤ u10 ≤ 11 m/s). As the vertical distribution of micro-plastic is known to be highly sensitive to wind stress, the values have been corrected and re-interpreted using the methodology proposed by Kukulka & al. 2012. The resulting corrected values suggest that the employed sampling process underestimated the surface micro-plastic concentration by an average factor of 1.55. The average concentrations of meso-plastic debris reached the number of 5’500 parts/km2 and the mass of 120’000 mg/km2, mostly fragments (57%) and thin films (34%). The results revealed that (1) plastic marine debris are widely distributed in western Mediterranean sea, (2) plastic debris concentrations in the Mediterranean Sea are of the same order of magnitude than those measured in the North Atlantic or North Pacific subtropical gyres and (3) plastic debris concentrations are about the same order of magnitude than dry organic material, arguing in favor of the hypothesis of potential misinterpretation and ingestion of these particles by plankton feeders in the sea. Kukulka T, Proskurowski G, Moret-Ferguson S, Meyer D, Lavender Law K, 2012. Geophysical Research Letters, vol 39.

2013

An evaluation of surface micro- and mesoplastic pollution in pelagic ecosystems of the Western Mediterranean Sea

Luiz Felippe De Alencastro, Florian Faure, Pascal Hagmann

This study examines the distribution, abundance and characteristics of surface micro- and mesoplastic debris in the Western Mediterranean Sea. 41 samples were collected in 2011 (summer) and 2012 (summer). Results, firstly, revealed that micro- (

Springer Heidelberg2015

An evaluation of surface micro and meso plastic pollution in pelagic ecosystems of western Mediterranean Sea

Luiz Felippe De Alencastro, Florian Faure, Pascal Hagmann

2013