Ep 40: Sargassum and Ocean Circulation with Dr. Rick Lumpkin

Dr. Rick Lumpkin is the Director of the Physical Oceanography Division of the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) research laboratory in Miami, FL: the Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML). Dr. Lumpkin’s research focuses on upper ocean processes and ocean circulation. As Principal Investigator of AOML’s component of NOAA’s Global Drifter Program (GDP), he oversees a global array of ~1300 satellite-tracked drifting buoys. He also helped design ocean currents displays in the Sant Ocean Hall of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History.

Listen to the episode to hear about:

• Introduction (3:44)
• What sargassum is to Dr. Rick Lumpkin (5:26)
• How the sargassum belt was established (8:12)
• Nutrients fueling sargassum blooms (12:32)
• Upwelling in the equatorial Atlantic (15:15)
• Explanation of methods and data used (16:56)
• Seasonality of sargassum influx (24:14)
• Permanence of the tropical Atlantic sargassum belt (26:55)
• Predictions of climate change (29:36)
• Possibility of a current that can remove sargassum (32:32)
• Debrief (36:54)

Transcript

Learn more about Dr. Rick Lumpkin:

֍ Graphics from Johns et al. (2020)

֍ NOAA’s Global Drifter Program

֍ Rick Lumpkin, PhD, Acting Director, Physical Oceanography Division

֍ AOML’s experimental Sargassum inundation reports

֍ LinkedIn

֍ Facebook

֍ Twitter

We love to hear from you, feel free to drop us an email to SargassumPodcast@gmx.net, and connect with us on social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn.

Can’t get enough? Become one of our patrons for as little as $1 a month. Patrons get to submit questions to us prior to the interviews that we will then ask our guests. We are grateful for each supporter and look forward to connecting with you.

Like our music? The song is called Them Ah Prey by Drizzle Roadranna. Follow him on YouTube and Spotify