THE BLACK SEA UPWELLING SYSTEM: A CLIMATOLOGICAL

ANALYSIS ON THE NORTH-WESTERN SHELF

Authors: Maria – Emanuela MIHAILOV 1, Petrică POPOV 1, Luminita LAZAR 2, Elena Daniela PANTEA 2, Diana STEFANESCU 1, Lucian
DUMITRACHE 1, Laurentiu-Florin CONSTANTINOIU 3, Alina – Daiana SPINU 2, Gabriel GANEA 2, Paula PARASCHIV 1, Nicolae VATU 1
1. Maritime Hydrographic Directorate „Comandor Alexandru Cătuneanu”, Fulgerului Street no.1, 900218 Constanta, Romania
2. National Institute for Marine Research and Development „Grigore Antipa” Constanța, Mamaia Blvd. 300RO-900581, Constanţa 3, Romania
3. NATO Maritime Geospatial Meteorological and Oceanographic Centre of Excellence, Rua das Trinas 49, 1249-093 Lisbon, Portugal
E-mails: emanuela.mihailov@dhmfn.ro, hidro@dhmfn.ro
Abstract. The upwelling is due to the combined effect of the coastal divergence process and Ekman pumping. The offshore component of Ekman Transport (the upwelling index) estimates the volume of upwelled flow
and depends on latitude and wind stress. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration developed the coastal upwelling index (NOAA), known as the “Bakun Index” (Bakun, 1973), to monitor the intensity of the
divergence and convergence processes nearly 50 years ago. We present two new upwelling indices for the Black Sea, derivated from climate reanalyse models and in situ data: a) Coastal Upwelling Transport Index
(CUTI, equivalent to the Bakun Index, that estimates the rate of vertical volume transport) and b) the Biologically Effective Upwelling Transport Index (BEUTI, that estimates the nitrate flux into the surface mixed layer).
The study aims to identify the regular pattern in increase and spatial homogenisation and analyse the sites along the North-western Black Sea where changes in divergence phenomena occur. We used monthly wind
means by European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) and Copernicus Marine Services for the Black Sea basin to calculate a series of metrics related to wind-driven upwelling dynamics (Coastal
Upwelling Index) and examine the relationship between marine nutrients and plankton environment during warm season for over 26 years (1993 - 2019). Along the North-Western Black Sea coast, the upwelling mainly
occurs during summer, under the action of south-to-west winds. From 2000 to 2018, 31 divergence processes were observed on the North-Western Black Sea shelf based on daily in-situ data from the coastal monitoring
stations, with significant predominance in late spring (May) and early summer (June). Nitrate supply by coastal upwelling has been estimated by combining sea surface temperature and salinity for the in-situ data for the
North-Western Black Sea shallow waters, and BEUTI indices are determined. Comparing the 2000 to 2018 results, the calculated indices and the observed upwelling events show significant correlations.
Keywords: upwelling, Coastal Upwelling Transport Index, Black Sea, Biologically Effective Upwelling Transport Index

DATA AND METHODS

European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts

(ECMWF) grid for the NW Black Sea shelf

I. COASTAL UPWELLING TRANSPORT (CUTI)

III. SST UPWELLING INDEX

In-situ data

UPWELLING (+)

On monthly timescales
DOWNWELLING (-)
during the portion of the
year most favourable to
upwelling (May–September)

I. BIOLOGICALLY EFFECTIVE UPWELLING INDEX (BEUTI)
CONCLUSIONS. In this paper, we have introduced new upwelling indices—CUTI, BEUTI and
SST—that provide monthly estimates of vertical transport, vertical nitrate flux and thermal
difference, respectively, along the North-Westrern Black Sea shelf. Upwelling phenomena
in the Black Sea, remains a topic of active research, but no studies point to an upwelling
index. To our knowledge, no prior studies have applied and tried to display the efficiency of
upwelling indexes based on wind and SST in the Black Sea.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Bakun, A. (1973). Coastal upwelling indices, west coast of North America. US Department of Commerce. NOAA Technical Report,
NMFS SSRF-671
Data source BEUTI: Marine Copernicus Service (https://marine.copernicus.eu/): Product: BLKSEA_REANALYSIS_BIO_007_005,
Black Sea Biogeochemistry Reanalysis

Acknowledgements. This study has been carried out with financial support from the Sectorial Research-Development Plan of the Romanian Ministry of National Defense, PSCD 2021 – 2024 Project (097 / 2021, 092 / 2022): „Development of an
integrated monitoring system to increase the quality of hydro-oceanographic data in the area of responsibility of the Romanian Naval Forces ”