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June 2016

Special Issue: Bay of Bengal: From Monsoons to Mixing

Oceanography

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF THE OCEANOGRAPHY SOCIETY

VOL.29, NO.2, JUNE 2016

Bay of Bengal:

From Monsoons to Mixing

Special Issue on the

Moored CTDs

Sea-Bird MicroCAT Family

+1 425 643 9866

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Oceanography | June 2016

SPECIAL ISSUE ON THE BAY OF BENGAL:

FROM MONSOONS TO MIXING

FROM THE GUEST EDITORS. Introduction to the Special Issue

on the Bay of Bengal: From Monsoons to Mixing

By A. Mahadevan, T. Paluszkiewicz, M. Ravichandran, D. Sengupta,

and A. Tandon

Monsoons to Mixing in the Bay of Bengal: Multiscale Air-Sea Interactions

and Monsoon Predictability

By B.N. Goswami, S.A. Rao, D. Sengupta, and S. Chakravorty

Air-Sea Interaction in the Bay of Bengal

By R.A. Weller, J.T. Farrar, J. Buckley, S. Mathew, R. Venkatesan, J. Sree Lekha,

D. Chaudhuri, N. Suresh Kumar, and B. Praveen Kumar

Representation of Bay of Bengal Upper-Ocean Salinity in General

Circulation Models

By J.S. Chowdary, G. Srinivas, T.S. Fousiya, A. Parekh, C. Gnanaseelan,

H. Seo, and J.A. MacKinnon

A Tale of Two Spicy Seas

By J.A. MacKinnon, J.D. Nash, M.H. Alford, A.J. Lucas, J.B. Mickett,

E.L. Shroyer, A.F. Waterhouse, A. Tandon, D. Sengupta, A. Mahadevan,

M. Ravichandran, R. Pinkel, D.L. Rudnick, C.B. Whalen, M.S. Alberty,

J. Sree Lekha, E.C. Fine, D. Chaudhuri, and G.L. Wagner

Modification of Upper-Ocean Temperature Structure by Subsurface Mixing

in the Presence of Strong Salinity Stratification

By E.L. Shroyer, D.L. Rudnick, J.T. Farrar, B. Lim, S.K. Venayagamoorthy,

L.C. St. Laurent, A. Garanaik, and J.N. Moum

Freshwater in the Bay of Bengal: Its Fate and Role in Air-Sea Heat Exchange

By A. Mahadevan, G. Spiro Jaeger, M. Freilich, M.M. Omand, E.L. Shroyer,

and D. Sengupta

Bay of Bengal: 2013 Northeast Monsoon Upper-Ocean Circulation

By A.L. Gordon, E.L. Shroyer, A. Mahadevan, D. Sengupta, and M. Freilich

Modeling Salinity Exchanges Between the Equatorial Indian Ocean and

the Bay of Bengal

By T.G. Jensen, H.W. Wijesekera, E.S. Nyadjro, P.G. Thoppil, J.F. Shriver,

K.K. Sandeep, and V. Pant

102 Collaborative Observations of Boundary Currents, Water Mass Variability,

and Monsoon Response in the Southern Bay of Bengal

By C.M. Lee, S.U.P. Jinadasa, A. Anutaliya, L.R. Centurioni, H.J.S. Fernando,

V. Hormann, M. Lankhorst, L. Rainville, U. Send, and H.W. Wijesekera

contents

VO L . 2 9, N O. 2 , J U N E 2 0 1 6

Oceanography | June 2016

Oceanography | Vol.29, No.2

112

Observations of Currents Over the Deep Southern Bay of Bengal—

With a Little Luck

By H.W. Wijesekera, W.J. Teague, E. Jarosz, D.W. Wang, T.G. Jensen,

S.U.P. Jinadasa, H.J.S. Fernando, L.R. Centurioni, Z.R. Hallock, E.L. Shroyer,

and J.N. Moum

124 Variability of Near-Surface Circulation and Sea Surface Salinity Observed

from Lagrangian Drifters in the Northern Bay of Bengal During the Waning

2015 Southwest Monsoon

By V. Hormann, L.R. Centurioni, A. Mahadevan, S. Essink, E.A. D’Asaro,

and B. Praveen Kumar

134 Adrift Upon a Salinity-Stratified Sea: A View of Upper-Ocean Processes

in the Bay of Bengal During the Southwest Monsoon

By A.J. Lucas, J.D. Nash, R. Pinkel, J.A. MacKinnon, A. Tandon, A. Mahadevan,

M.M. Omand, M. Freilich, D. Sengupta, M. Ravichandran, and A. Le Boyer

146 The Interplay Between Submesoscale Instabilities and Turbulence in the

Surface Layer of the Bay of Bengal

By S. Sarkar, H.T. Pham, S. Ramachandran, J.D. Nash, A. Tandon, J. Buckley,

A.A. Lotliker, and M.M. Omand

158 Monsoon Mixing Cycles in the Bay of Bengal: A Year-Long Subsurface

Mixing Record

By S.J. Warner, J. Becherer, K. Pujiana, E.L. Shroyer, M. Ravichandran,

V.P. Thangaprakash, and J.N. Moum

170 Ocean Turbulence and Mixing Around Sri Lanka and in Adjacent Waters

of the Northern Bay of Bengal

By S.U.P. Jinadasa, I. Lozovatsky, J. Planella-Morató, J.D. Nash,

J.A. MacKinnon, A.J. Lucas, H.W. Wijesekera, and H.J.S. Fernando

180 Decay Mechanisms of Near-Inertial Mixed Layer Oscillations in the

Bay of Bengal

By T.M.S. Johnston, D. Chaudhuri, M. Mathur, D.L. Rudnick, D. Sengupta,

H.L. Simmons, A. Tandon, and R. Venkatesan

192 Large-Scale Air-Sea Coupling Processes in the Bay of Bengal Using

Space-Borne Observations

By R. Sharma, N. Agarwal, A. Chakraborty, S. Mallick, J. Buckley, V. Shesu,

and A. Tandon

202 What Controls Seasonal Evolution of Sea Surface Temperature in the

Bay of Bengal? Mixed Layer Heat Budget Analysis Using Moored Buoy

Observations Along 90°E

By V.P. Thangaprakash, M.S. Girishkumar, K. Suprit, N. Suresh Kumar,

D. Chaudhuri, K. Dinesh, A. Kumar, S. Shivaprasad, M. Ravichandran,

J.T. Farrar, R. Sundar, and R.A. Weller

ON THE COVER. A series of vignettes from a research ship

in the Bay of Bengal (above water), during the southwest monsoon

season. On sunny days, the sea surface is a source of heat and mois-

ture feeding deep atmospheric convection. The placid conditions

are abruptly terminated by an approaching wall cloud, accompanied

by gusty winds and torrential monsoon rains. While the ocean’s

surface layer is visibly stirred up, what are the processes that deter-

mine the interior properties and currents? And, how are the air-sea

fluxes themselves affected? These are questions addressed by the

articles in this issue. Photo credits: Above-water photographs by

San Nguyen, Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Bottom panel

photo by Gualtiero Spiro Jaeger, MIT/WHOI Joint Program

Oceanography | Vol.29, No.2

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SPECIAL ISSUE SPONSOR

Production of this issue of Oceanography

was supported by the US Office of Naval

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of Oceanography.

SPECIAL ISSUE GUEST EDITORS

• AMALA MAHADEVAN

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

• THERESA PALUSZKIEWICZ

Office of Naval Research

• M. RAVICHANDRAN

Indian National Centre for Ocean

Information Services

• DEBASIS SENGUPTA

Centre for Atmospheric and Oceanic

Sciences, Indian Institute of Science

• AMIT TANDON

University of Massachusetts Dartmouth

112

Oceanography | June 2016

Editor

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Oceanography

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OCEANOGRAPHY

SOCIETY

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Rockville, MD 20849-1931 USA

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to disseminate knowledge of oceanography and

its application through research and education, to

promote communication among oceanographers,

and to provide a constituency for consensus-

building across all the disciplines of the field.

OFFICERS

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Alan Mix, President-Elect

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Susan Cook, Secretary

Susan Banahan, Treasurer

COUNCILLORS

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Oceanography | June 2016

Oceanography | Vol.29, No.2

242

264

273

214 Penetrative Radiative Flux in the Bay of Bengal

By A.A. Lotliker, M.M. Omand, A.J. Lucas, S.R. Laney, A. Mahadevan,

and M. Ravichandran

222 Effects of Freshwater Stratification on Nutrients, Dissolved Oxygen,

and Phytoplankton in the Bay of Bengal

By V.V.S.S. Sarma, G.D. Rao, R. Viswanadham, C.K. Sherin, J. Salisbury,

M.M. Omand, A. Mahadevan, V.S.N. Murty, E.L. Shroyer, M. Baumgartner,

and K.M. Stafford

232 Remotely Driven Anomalous Sea-Air Heat Flux Over the North Indian

Ocean During the Summer Monsoon Season

By G.S. Bhat and H.J.S. Fernando

242 Technological Advancements in Observing the Upper Ocean in the

Bay of Bengal: Education and Capacity Building

By A. Tandon, E.A. D’Asaro, K.M. Stafford, D. Sengupta, M. Ravichandran,

M. Baumgartner, R. Venkatesan, and T. Paluszkiewicz

REGULAR ISSUE FEATURES

254 Journey of an Arctic Ice Island

By A.J. Crawford, P. Wadhams, T.J.W. Wagner, A. Stern, E.P. Abrahamsen,

I. Church, R. Bates, and K.W. Nicholls

264 Oceanography Surrounding Krakatau Volcano in the Sunda Strait, Indonesia

By R.D. Susanto, Z. Wei, T.R. Adi, Q. Zheng, G. Fang, B. Fan, A. Supangat,

T. Agustiadi, S. Li, M. Trenggono, and A. Setiawan

273 Biological Impacts of the 2013–2015 Warm-Water Anomaly in the

Northeast Pacific: Winners, Losers, and the Future

By L.M. Cavole, A.M. Demko, R.E. Diner, A. Giddings, I. Koester,

C.M.L.S. Pagniello, M.-L. Paulsen, A. Ramirez-Valdez, S.M. Schwenck,

N.K. Yen, M.E. Zill, and P.J.S. Franks

286 Summer Bridge Program Establishes Nascent Pipeline to Expand and

Diversify Hawai‘i’s Undergraduate Geoscience En rollment

By B.C. Bruno, J.L.K. Wren, K. Noa, E.M. Wood-Charlson, J. Ayau,

S. Leon Soon, H. Needham, and C.A. Choy

DEPARTMENTS

QUARTERDECK. Wading in the Footsteps of an Ecological Giant

By C.H. Greene

FROM THE PRESIDENT. Oceanographers at the Beach

By M.S. Lozier

RIP CURRENT—NEWS IN OCEANOGRAPHY. First Evidence of

Bioluminescence on a “Black Smoker” Hydrothermal Chimney

By B.T. Phillips, D.F. Gruber, G. Vasan, V.A. Pieribone, J.S. Sparks,

and C.N. Roman

RIPPLE MARKS. It’s Catching: Leukemia, Third Known Transmissible

Cancer, Infects Soft-Shell Clams

By C.L. Dybas

293 THE OCEANOGRAPHY CLASSROOM. Polar Oceanography:

Engendering Students with a Sense of Place and a Sense of Time

By C.S. Roesler

296 CAREER PROFILES. Sarah A. Stone and Micaela S. Parker, Program

Managers, eScience Institute, University of Washington |

Adrienne J. Sutton, Research Scientist, JISAO, University of Washington

Oceanography | Vol.29, No.2

286

Oceanography | June 2016

QUARTERDECK

The great American marine ecologist

Robert T. (Bob) Paine passed away in

Seattle on June 13, 2016. During the last

half century, Bob introduced some of the

most important conceptual advances in

community ecology, perhaps none more

influential than that of the keystone spe-

cies. A keystone species is one that has

a disproportionately large effect on its

surrounding community. Such a species

plays a critical role in maintaining the

community’s structure, affecting many

other organisms, and helping to deter-

mine the types and numbers of various

other species found in that community.

The keystone species concept came

to Bob as he pondered the spectacu-

lar wave-swept shores of the Pacific

Northwest’s rocky intertidal. Arriving at the University

of Washington in 1962 as a new assistant professor, Bob

applied the concepts that he had learned at the University of

Michigan from three of the most influential ecologists of their

day—Nelson Hairston, Fred Smith, and Larry Slobodkin. In

1960, this trio published one of the all-time classic papers in

ecology—“Community Structure, Population Control, and

Competition.” This paper, which is referred to by most ecologists

today simply as “HSS,” laid the foundation for a career Bob spent

experimentally tinkering in the ecology between Pacific tides.

HSS hypothesized that the world was green because the pop-

ulations of herbivorous species grazing on green plants were

held in check by predatory species higher up the food chain.

This revolutionary idea tipped the world of community ecol-

ogy upside down. Prior to HSS, most ecologists viewed natural

communities as being structured from the bottom up, with the

amount of energy flowing from lower to higher trophic levels

in the food chain determining community structure. Bob took

this top-down worldview from the land-locked campus of the

University of Michigan and applied it to the familiar but poorly

understood rocky shores of Washington state.

Fifty years ago this year, Bob published his own classic paper,

“Food Web Complexity and Species Diversity,” which sketched

out ideas that would later become known as the keystone spe-

cies and trophic cascade concepts. Bob had found that by

experimentally removing the predatory

ochre sea star, Pisaster ochraceus, from

the seashore, he could fundamentally

alter the intertidal community’s struc-

ture and diversity. The effects of Pisaster’s

removal cascaded down the food chain,

eliminating certain species and alter-

ing the web of interactions occurring

among the rocky shore’s other inhab-

itants. To future generations of ecolo-

gists being trained around the world,

Pisaster became known as the quintes-

sential keystone predator. This concept

was subsequently extended to include

other species whose removal or addition

disproportionately affected the commu-

nities around them.

Similar to the keystone species he

studied, Bob’s intellectual contributions had a disproportion-

ate effect on the field of community ecology. Not only did he

develop important theoretical concepts, he also demonstrated

the value of field experiments in testing ecological theory. By

example, Bob became the progenitor of a vast school of experi-

mental ecologists (Figure 1), most working in marine environ-

ments, but some also venturing into terrestrial and freshwater

realms. Bob’s influence spread well beyond the direct descen-

dants on his academic family tree. In fact, many attribute Bob’s

promotion of the field experimental approach as one of the

great turning points in twentieth century ecology.

As fundamental as Bob’s contributions have already been

to basic ecological theory, their application to practical, real-

world problems will play an increasingly important role as soci-

ety attempts to understand and grapple with the problems aris-

ing in our rapidly changing ocean. For example, during the

persistent ocean heat wave that has plagued coastal waters

from California to Alaska during the past three years (see

article by Cavole et al., 2016, in this issue, for further discus-

sion), there has been a collapse of most sea star populations in

rocky intertidal and shallow subtidal habitats. Sea star wast-

ing syndrome appears to be responsible for a majority of these

temperature-mediated disease outbreaks (Pfister et al., 2016).

Laying waste to not only Pisaster in the intertidal, but also to

the subtidal keystone predator, the sunflower star Pycnopodia

Wading in the Footsteps

of an Ecological Giant

Oceanography | Vol.29, No.2

helianthoides, sea star wasting disease is altering rocky seashore

communities on an unprecedented scale.

In many subtidal habitats in Northern California, pur-

ple urchin populations have increased in abundance by nearly

an order of magnitude. Combined with warmer ocean tem-

peratures unfavorable to kelp growth, sea urchin grazing has

reduced many of the West Coast’s lush and diverse kelp forests

to barren grounds of grazer-resistant coralline algae. Devoid of

the kelp providing protection and nutrition, these urchin bar-

ren grounds can no longer sustain the high diversity and pro-

ductivity of invertebrate and fish species characteristic of kelp

forest communities.

Was the disappearance of Pycnopodia responsible for the

coincident population explosion of purple urchins? The contri-

butions of Bob and his students and colleagues have provided

us with the theoretical framework and experimental methods

required to tease out the ecological basis for the observed eco-

system regime shift. If the release of urchins from sea star preda-

tion has played a significant role in triggering this regime shift,

then it is unlikely the kelp forests will recover to their former

state, even with the return of cooler La Niña conditions, with-

out some sort of natural perturbation or human intervention to

reduce urchin abundance. I can picture the smile on Bob’s face

as his academic offspring contemplate how to make the world of

kelp forests green again.

Charles H. Greene, Associate Editor, Oceanography

REFERENCES

Cavole, L.M., A.M. Demko, R.E. Diner, A. Giddings, I. Koester, C.M.L.S. Pagniello,

M.-L. Paulsen, A. Ramirez-Valdez, S.M. Schwenck, N.K. Yen, and others. 2016.

Biological impacts of the 2013–2015 warm-water anomaly in the Northeast

Pacific: Winners, losers, and the future. Oceanography 29(2):273–285,

http://dx.doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.2016.32.

Hairston, N.G., F.E. Smith, and L.B. Slobodkin. 1960. Community structure, popula-

tion control, and competition. The American Naturalist 94(879):421–425.

Paine, R.T. 1966. Food web complexity and species diversity. The American

Naturalist 100(910):65–75.

Pfister, C.A., R.T. Paine, and J.T. Wooten. 2016. The iconic keystone predator

has a pathogen. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment 14(5):285–286,

http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/fee.1292.

FIGURE 1. The Robert T. Paine

academic family tree at the

time of his retirement, drawn by

Marian Kohn in 1999.

Oceanography | June 2016

Call for Nominations for 2016

http://tos.org/awardshonors

The Oceanography Society (TOS) Fellows Program was established to recognize indi-

viduals who have attained eminence in oceanography through their outstanding con-

tributions to the field of oceanography or its applications over a substantial number

of years. TOS members are encouraged to participate in honoring such individuals by

nominating or seconding their election as a TOS Fellow. TOS members from all areas

of oceanography will be considered for the Fellows Program. A recommendation for

advancement to TOS Fellow is appropriate after an individual has been a TOS member

for at least three years, depending on his or her contributions to the field.

The main criteria for being elected a TOS Fellow are outstanding and sustained con-

tributions, and devotion to the broad field of oceanography, commensurate with the

founding principles of the Society.

To be considered this year, the Nominator, who must be a TOS member, should submit a

nomination package by October 31, 2016. Important details and instructions regard-

ing the nomination process are provided at http://tos.org/awardshonors. This infor-

mation is also available upon request from the TOS Executive Director (info@tos.org).

The Oceanography Society Fellows Program

The Oceanography Society | P.O. Box 1931, Rockville, MD 20849-1931, USA | Telephone: 301/251-7708 | Fax: 301/251-7709 | E-mail: info@tos.org

Recognizing Individuals Who Have Attained Eminence in Oceanography

Through Their Outstanding Contributions to the Field of Oceanography or Its Applications

Oceanography | Vol.29, No.2

It’s June, when my brain starts thinking of ocean temperatures

in degrees Fahrenheit rather than degrees Celsius. Clearly, I

am readying for ocean swims. In anticipation of your summer

vacation and mine, I have asked a handful of my (favorite) fel-

low oceanographers to name their favorite beaches and beach

reads. Essentially, I have compiled a top-ten list of beaches and

books for oceanographers. You will see that some oceanogra-

phers can’t get enough of science, even at the beach; some are

looking for total escape, some for culture, others for adventure;

and at least one oceanographer reads papers that will give him a

good beach sleep! Who knew?

Enjoy the selections below and your next beach vacation!

Rick Murray, Boston University

My favorite beach is East Beach on Chappaquiddick Island,

Martha’s Vineyard. I’ve been to hundreds of beaches all around

the world, but this one is tops, perhaps because I’ve had the priv-

ilege of going there since I was a wee laddie.

As for my favorite beach read, I bounce around between

forget-as-soon-as-finished spy novel silly readings or long books

about, well, the ocean, such as Voyage by Sterling Hayden or

Melville’s Moby Dick. I like good yarns that in essence offer a

commentary on the human condition. In that vein, I’m also par-

tial to the history of aspects of science or medicine (including

biographies) or the development of a particular component of

civilization (e.g., of maritime commerce).

Kim Martini, JISAO, University of Washington, and

Deep Sea News science blogger

While some may go to the beach for the sun and sand, I say,

go for the physics. Turnagain Arm is just an hour’s drive south

of Anchorage, Alaska, and boasts some of the largest tides in

the world. When the tide floods, vast quantities of water are

squeezed into this narrow inlet, forming a tidal bore surfed for

miles by humans and followed by opportunistic beluga whales

searching for food. When the tide ebbs, vast mud flats painted

with ripples and etched with miniature canyons are revealed.

The dynamical beauty of this beach is best matched with a blan-

ket and the captivating “The origin and growth of ripple-mark”

by Hertha Marks Ayrton, a pioneering scientist, engineer, and

fluid dynamicist. Written with an irrepressible sense of wonder

and accompanied by delightful hand-drawn illustrations, this

century-old text is both an ode to science and to the beach.

Stefanie Mack, Old Dominion University, graduate

student, TOS Council student representative

My favorite beach is probably North Carolina’s Emerald Isle. I

have fond memories of vacationing there with my grandparents

as a child, and steaming our own fresh caught crabs!

I love using books to temporarily disconnect from reality. I’m

currently enjoying Brandon Sanderson’s fantasy writing, specifi-

cally his logical and almost scientific treatment of magic.

Fiamma Straneo, WHOI, 2016 Sverdrup Lecturer

Black Beach on Buzzards Bay is my favorite beach. It owes its

name to the outcropping peat layers formed by salt marshes

retreating inland as sea level rose and glaciers retreated. Even

when distracted by the turquoise waters, the glacial boulder sit-

ting in the water reminds you of its origins. Getting to Black

Beach is part of its charm: it is only accessible by boat, a long

walk from Chapoquoit Beach, or by bike. Biking is my favor-

ite because you pass through the teeming Great Sippewissett

Marsh—where you can see striped bass, quahogs, blue crabs,

and more kinds of herons that I can name. Any visit to this beach

is incomplete if you don’t hop over the sand dunes and explore

its multitude of colors and sounds, before settling back down in

the warm, peat-rich sand.

My kids’ seemingly endless energy at the beach (and else-

where really) leaves little room for captivating novels or thought-

provoking nonfiction. Poetry collections work best because

I can get from start to end of a poem in a few stolen breaks.

Mary Oliver’s collection What Do We Know, inspired by many

of the same surroundings, gives me the same sense of awe as the

nature around me.

Mark Cane, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of

Columbia University, 2016 TOS Fellow

I can’t decide on one favorite beach, so here are contenders:

1. Nostalgic choice: Riis Park in New York City, because I went

there a lot as a child and teenager. So did Arnold Gordon.

2. Current use: Miami Beach, where I spend the winters now.

Interesting crowd.

3. Best I’ve seen: Canoa Quebrada, in Ceara, Brazil. Tudo biem.

My favorite beach read is M.S. Lozier, 2010 Science,

“Deconstructing the conveyor belt.” A great read, and short, so I

can lie on the beach and think deep thoughts.

Oceanographers at the Beach

FROM THE PRESIDENT