Submesoscale horizontal stirring enhances seasonal enrichment of low-chlorophyll surface waters

Submesoscale horizontal stirring enhances seasonal enrichment of low-chlorophyll surface waters in the Eastern Mediterranean | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Submesoscale horizontal stirring enhances seasonal enrichment of low-chlorophyll surface waters in the Eastern Mediterranean Yoatm fadida, Vicky Verma, Roy Barkan, Eli Biton, Aviv Solodoch, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4021986/v2 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 2 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Show more versions Abstract The large seasonal increase in marine photosynthetic organisms - i.e., phytoplankton bloom - is a ubiquitous oceanic phenomenon that contributes to the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and that supports the growth and development of larger organisms throughout the marine ecosystem. The underlying mechanisms controlling the intensity and timing of these blooms have been proposed to be dominated by vertical transport and mixing processes that are enhanced at front and filament circulation patterns, commonly known as submesoscale currents. Here we show that the winter blooms characterizing the ultra oligotrophic waters of the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, which are manifested by a seasonal increase in satellite-derived levels of surface chlorophyll, are intensified by enhanced horizontal stirring induced by the submesoscale currents. Using ocean color remote sensing data and high-resolution numerical simulations, we demonstrate that the intensification of submesoscale currents in winter efficiently connect the coastal waters and the ultra-oligotrophic waters in the sea interior, thereby enriching the latter with chlorophyll-rich water. A comparison of climatological chlorophyll time series indicates that this submesoscale horizontal stirring mechanism is responsible for ∼ 24% of the seasonal surface chlorophyll increase in the region. These results shed new light on the processes governing phytoplankton bloom intensity and emphasize the important role of submesoscale horizontal stirring in regulating the marine ecosystem. Oceanography submesoscale horizontal stirring oligotrophic seas phytoplankton blooms Eastern Mediterranean Sea Full Text Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Supplementary Files paperyotamforpreprintsimar2024.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 2 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Show more versions Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-4021986","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":277185879,"identity":"4dd90ab9-d53e-401e-941f-243bb4341592","order_by":0,"name":"Yoatm fadida","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"University of Haifa","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Yoatm","middleName":"","lastName":"fadida","suffix":""},{"id":277185880,"identity":"8fd5298a-2502-4195-bfaf-14aeb44eddc1","order_by":1,"name":"Vicky Verma","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Tel Aviv 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