Modeling the seasonal cycle of the oxygen minimum zone over the continental shelf off Concepción, Chile (36.5° S)

Abstract

Abstract. We analyze the seasonal dynamics of oxygen concentrations in the southernmost part of the Eastern South Pacific oxygen minimum zone (ESP's OMZ), offshore of Concepción, Chile (~37° S). We use data from a time series over the continental shelf off Concepción, as well as other hydrographic data and measurements from moored instruments and ocean gliders to evaluate temporal and spatial variability in this region. We identify two extreme modes (winter and summer) that characterize the seasonal variability. A simple model that account for the main physical and biological processes that influences the oxygen concentration was developed. According to our results, the seasonal variability of the dissolved oxygen in the study region is mainly driven by lateral (advective and diffusive) transport that connect the waters over the shelf with poorly oxygenated water from the slope, which is in turn, advected southward by the Peru-Chile Undercurrent.