http://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/49073/1/CanC_review_PiO2009.pdf

Sub-regional ecosystem variability in the Canary Current upwelling

http://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/50292/1/Physical_oceanography_western_Iberia.pdf

Physical oceanography of the western Iberia ecosystem: Latest views and challenges

An overview of the winter circulation and upper ocean structure offshore of Western Iberia is presented. The focus is on winter slope currents, fronts and mesoscale eddies, as well as on the connection of these local features to the large-scale circulation of the region. Satellite sea surface temperature; sea surface elevation data from altimetry; cross-shore and meridional hydrological surveys and current meter observations, mainly obtained during winter periods, are used to illustrate features of the winter upper ocean structure and of the generation and evolution of the Iberia Poleward Current. A schematic/hypothetical model of winter upper ocean circulation on the scale of the Western Iberian Basin is given which attempts to systematize and resolve certain ambiguities in the existing circulation schemes and in the concepts and terminology used to describe observed features in the area.

Winter upper ocean circulation in the Western Iberian Basin—Fronts, Eddies and Poleward Flows: an overview

Present-day and past (last 25000 years) marine pollen signal off western Iberia

The aim of this work is to constrain the provenance and depositional history of continental slope sediments in the Southwestern Gulf of Mexico (~1089–1785 m water depth). To achieve this, 10 piston sediment cores (~5–5.5 m long) were studied for mineralogy, major, trace and rare earth element geochemistry. Samples were analyzed at three core sections, i.e. upper (0–1 cm), middle (30–31 cm) and lower (~300–391 cm). The textural study reveals that the core sediments are characterized by silt and clay fractions. Radiocarbon dating of sediments for the cores at different levels indicated a maximum of ~28,000 year BP. Sediments were classified as shale. The chemical index of alteration (CIA) values for the upper, middle, and lower sections revealed moderate weathering in the source region. The index of chemical maturity (ICV) and SiO 2 /Al 2 O 3 ratio indicated low compositional maturity for the core sediments. A statistically significant correlation observed between total rare earth elements (∑REE) versus Al 2 O 3 and Zr indicated that REE are mainly housed in detrital minerals. The North American Shale Composite (NASC) normalized REE patterns, trace element concentrations such as Cr, Ni and V, and the comparison of REE concentrations in sediments and source rocks indicated that the study area received sediments from rocks intermediate between felsic and mafic composition. The enrichment factor (EF) results indicated that the Cd and Zn contents of the upper section sediments were influenced by an anthropogenic source. The trace element ratios and authigenic U content of the core sediments indicated the existence of an oxic depositional environment.

Álvaro Oliveira

Papers

Winter dynamics on the northern Portuguese shelf. Part 1: physical processes

Clay minerals from the sedimentary cover from the Northwest Iberian shelf

Present day sedimentary processes on the northern Iberian shelf

Recent sedimentation and sedimentary budgets on the western Iberian shelf

Winter dynamics on the northern Portuguese shelf. Part 2: bottom boundary layers and sediment dispersal