The emergence of concurrent high‐resolution physical and bio‐optical measurements in the upper ocean and their applications

Time and space scales of processes relevant to the upper ocean ecosystem span more than 9 orders of magnitude, consequently adequate sampling of the oceanic environment is a major challenge. However, new capabilities for studying upper ocean physical and bio‐optical processes have developed rapidly within the past decade with the advancement of sensor technology and data acquisition and storage capabilities. Several oceanic measurement systems have been designed recently to enable the collection of physical and bio‐optical data concurrently. Problems concerning variability in primary production by phytoplankton, upper ocean heating, small‐scale physical mixing and advection, the dispersion of oceanic discharges, and global scale climate change related to the carbon cycle can now benefit from in situ concurrent physical and bio‐optical data sets. The ocean sampling platforms utilized for deployment of these systems have included ships, the stable platform Research Platform FLIP , moorings and drifters. Examples of recent data sets obtained from these platforms are presented, and the merits of each of these sampling modes are described. In addition, the needs for complementary in situ and remotely sensed (for example, from satellites) data sets for both analytical and modeling efforts are summarized. Several research applications of the new technology are highlighted.