Casas Benjamin

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Casas
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Benjamin
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  • Article
    The AlborEX dataset: Sampling of sub-mesoscale features in the Alboran Aea
    (Copernicus Publications, 2019-01-25) Troupin, Charles ; Pascual, Ananda ; Ruiz, Simon ; Olita, Antonio ; Casas, Benjamin ; Margirier, Félix ; Poulain, Pierre Marie ; Notarstefano, Giulio ; Torner, Marc ; Fernández, Juan Gabriel ; Rújula, Miquel Àngel ; Muñoz, Cristian ; Alou, Eva ; Ruiz, Inmaculada ; Tovar-Sánchez, Antonio ; Allen, John T. ; Mahadevan, Amala ; Tintoré, Joaquín
    he AlborEX (Alboran Sea Experiment) consisted of a multi-platform, multi-disciplinary experiment carried out in the Alboran Sea (western Mediterranean Sea) between 25 and 31 May 2014. The observational component of AlborEx aimed to sample the physical and biogeochemical properties of oceanographic features present along an intense frontal zone, with a particular interest in the vertical motions in its vicinity. To this end, the mission included 1 research vessel (66 profiles), 2 underwater gliders (adding up 552 profiles), 3 profiling floats, and 25 surface drifters. Near real-time ADCP velocities were collected nightly and during the CTD sections. All of the profiling floats acquired temperature and conductivity profiles, while the Provor-bio float also measured oxygen and chlorophyll a concentrations, coloured dissolved organic matter, backscattering at 700nm, downwelling irradiance at 380, 410, and 490nm, as well as photo-synthetically active radiation (PAR). In the context of mesoscale and sub-mesoscale interactions, the AlborEX dataset constitutes a particularly valuable source of information to infer mechanisms, evaluate vertical transport, and establish relationships between the thermal and haline structures and the biogeochemical variable evolution, in a region characterised by strong horizontal gradients provoked by the confluence of Atlantic and Mediterranean waters, thanks to its multi-platform, multi-disciplinary nature. The dataset presented in this paper can be used for the validation of high-resolution numerical models or for data assimilation experiment, thanks to the various scales of processes sampled during the cruise. All the data files that make up the dataset are available in the SOCIB data catalog at https://doi.org/10.25704/z5y2-qpye (Pascual et al., 2018). The nutrient concentrations are available at https://repository.socib.es:8643/repository/entry/show?entryid=07ebf505-bd27-4ae5-aa43-c4d1c85dd500 (last access: 24 December 2018).
  • Article
    A multiplatform experiment to unravel meso- and submesoscale processes in an intense front (AlborEx).
    (Frontiers Media, 2017-02-21) Pascual, Ananda ; Ruiz, Simon ; Olita, Antonio ; Troupin, Charles ; Claret, Mariona ; Casas, Benjamin ; Mourre, Baptiste ; Poulain, Pierre Marie ; Tovar-Sanchez, Antonio ; Capet, Arthur ; Mason, Evan ; Allen, John T. ; Mahadevan, Amala ; Tintoré, Joaquín
    The challenges associated with meso- and submesoscale variability (between 1 and 100 km) require high-resolution observations and integrated approaches. Here we describe a major oceanographic experiment designed to capture the intense but transient vertical motions in an area characterized by strong fronts. Finescale processes were studied in the eastern Alboran Sea (Western Mediterranean) about 400 km east of the Strait of Gibraltar, a relatively sparsely sampled area. In-situ systems were coordinated with satellite data and numerical simulations to provide a full description of the physical and biogeochemical variability. Hydrographic data confirmed the presence of an intense salinity front formed by the confluence of Atlantic Waters, entering from Gibraltar, with the local Mediterranean waters. The drifters coherently followed the northeastern limb of an anticyclonic gyre. Near real time data from acoustic current meter data profiler showed consistent patterns with currents of up to 1 m/s in the southern part of the sampled domain. High-resolution glider data revealed submesoscale structures with tongues of chlorophyll-a and oxygen associated with the frontal zone. Numerical results show large vertical excursions of tracers that could explain the subducted tongues and filaments captured by ocean gliders. A unique aspect of AlborEx is the combination of high-resolution synoptic measurements of vessel-based measurements, autonomous sampling, remote sensing and modeling, enabling the evaluation of the underlying mechanisms responsible for the observed distributions and biogeochemical patchiness. The main findings point to the importance of fine-scale processes enhancing the vertical exchanges between the upper ocean and the ocean interior.
  • Technical Report
    CALYPSO 2019 Cruise Report: field campaign in the Mediterranean
    (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2020-01) Mahadevan, Amala ; D'Asaro, Eric A. ; Allen, John T. ; Almaraz García, Pablo ; Alou-Font, Eva ; Aravind, Harilal Meenambika ; Balaguer, Pau ; Caballero, Isabel ; Calafat, Noemi ; Carbornero, Andrea ; Casas, Benjamin ; Castilla, Carlos ; Centurioni, Luca R. ; Conley, Margaret ; Cristofano, Gino ; Cutolo, Eugenio ; Dever, Mathieu ; Enrique Navarro, Angélica ; Falcieri, Francesco ; Freilich, Mara ; Goodwin, Evan ; Graham, Raymond ; Guigand, Cedric ; Hodges, Benjamin A. ; Huntley, Helga ; Johnston, T. M. Shaun ; Lankhorst, Matthias ; Lermusiaux, Pierre F. J. ; Lizaran, Irene ; Mirabito, Chris ; Miralles, A. ; Mourre, Baptiste ; Navarro, Gabriel ; Ohmart, Michael ; Ouala, Said ; Ozgokmen, Tamay M. ; Pascual, Ananda ; Pou, Joan Mateu Horrach ; Poulain, Pierre Marie ; Ren, Alice ; Tarry, Daniel R. ; Rudnick, Daniel L. ; Rubio, M. ; Ruiz, Simon ; Rypina, Irina I. ; Tintore, Joaquin ; Send, Uwe ; Shcherbina, Andrey Y. ; Torner, Marc ; Salvador-Vieira, Guilherme ; Wirth, Nikolaus ; Zarokanellos, Nikolaos
    This cruise aimed to identify transport pathways from the surface into the interior ocean during the late winter in the Alborán sea between the Strait of Gibraltar (5°40’W) and the prime meridian. Theory and previous observations indicated that these pathways likely originated at strong fronts, such as the one that separates salty Mediterranean water and the fresher water in owing from the Atlantic. Our goal was to map such pathways and quantify their transport. Since the outcropping isopycnals at the front extend to the deepest depths during the late winter, we planned the cruise at the end of the Spring, prior to the onset of thermal stratification of the surface mixed layer.