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Ocean Sciences: Lagrangian methods in marine sciences

Discover the Lagrangian methods in physical oceanography with examples of applications for the study of fine scales circulation, coastal eddies and marine species connectivity.

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CIVIS focus area
Climate, environment and energy
Open to
  • Master's
  • Phd
Field of studies
  • Natural Sciences and Mathematics
Type
  • Short-term
  • CIVIS Hub 1
Course dates
2, 10 & 16 November 2021

This short course aims to provide an introduction to the Lagrangian methods to identify, track and sample dynamical structures of physical-biogeochemical interest and to investigate the multi-scale variability of ocean connectivity that controls the recruitment of exploited fish species. 

Turbulent and energetic oceanic currents strongly affect the marine environment, the biogeochemical budgets and the early-life stages of many marine organisms. Complex and short-time processes, such as coastal eddies and filaments, represent a real challenge during in situ measurements. Propagule dispersal affects key ecological and evolutionary processes such as those governing population structure and dynamics, which are fundamental pre-requisites for ecosystem protection and management.

In the context of this course, participants will be provided with a short overview of recent advances obtained during oceanographic cruises organized by the MIO and several case studies combining models and observations.

Main topics addressed

  • Lagrangian diagnostics to identify and track oceanic dynamical features such as eddy, fronts and filaments
  • Satellite-based in situ sampling methodologies for oceanographic cruises
  • ocean vertical velocity estimations
  • investigations of the multi-scale variability of ocean connectivity
  • development of multi-generation dispersal models

Learning outcome

  • An overview about the Lagrangian approaches to study the ocean circulation and its role on the dispersion of biogeochemicals, pollutants and marine organisms

 


This course is part of the European University of Ocean Sciences, a coordinated set of activities and programmes within CIVIS which explore vital questions for Europe's marine and maritime environments.

Language: English Date: 2, 10 & 16 November 2021 in the afternoon
Format: Virtual N° of places for CIVIS students: 10 
Contacts: 

Andrea Doglioli: andrea.doglioli@univ-amu.fr

Anne Petrenko: anne.petrenko@univ-amu.fr 

Vincent Rossi: vincent.rossi@univ-amu.fr

This online course will take place in the afternoon on November 2, 10 and 16.  Each online course will last about 2.30 hours, for a total of 8 hours.

Requirements

Applicants should be Master's or PhD students at one of the CIVIS member universities.

A working knowledge of English (at least B2 level) is required. 

Application process

Applicants should send their CV and a cover letter (maximum 500 words) by the 30 September 2021 to andrea.doglioli@univ-amu.fr, with anne.petrenko@univ-amu.fr as well as vincent.rossi@mio.osupytheas.fr in cc. Selected students will be notified on October 5.

Assessment

The assessment will be based on an oral discussion about the case studies presented during the course. 

GDPR Consent

The CIVIS alliance and its member universities will treat the information you provide with respect. Please refer to our privacy policy for more information on our privacy practices. By applying to this course you agree that we may process your information in accordance with these terms.

Andrea Doglioli

Andrea Doglioli is an Associate Professor. He got his PhD in Marine Science at the University of Genoa (Italy), then worked at the LPO-Laboratory of Physics of Oceans in Brest before joining the MIO- Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography in Marseille. His research focuses on the study of ocean circulation and turbulence and their impact on the life of organisms and the dispersion of pollutants. His research methods cover a broad spectrum ranging from numerical models to satellite data to in situ measurement. He has participated in more than 10 oceanographic campaigns and he is a teacher of the Master of Marine Sciences of Aix-Marseille Université.

Anne Petrenko

Dr. Anne Petrenko, at MIO (Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography) Marseille, is Head of the “Physical and Biogeochemical Oceanography” specialty of AMU (Aix-Marseille University) Oceanography Master Program. She has previously supervised more than 50 undergraduate or MSc students, 20 PhD students and/or postdocs (including 3 Marie Curie fellows). Dr Anne Petrenko obtained her Diploma of Engineering from ENSTA (Techniques Avancées, France), a Master degree at Scripps Institution of Oceanography (USA), her PhD at USC (CA, USA) and completed a postdoc at OSU (OR, USA). Her research interests focus on fine-scale processes and physics/biology coupling combining analysis of in situ, satellite and numerical data, with participation to > 35 cruises. Principal Investigator of LATEX (Lagrangian Transport EXperiment), she is currently co-PI of FUMSECK-vv (French project) dedicated to the measurement of vertical velocities in the ocean.

Vincent Rossi

Vincent Rossi graduated with a Ph.D. in a lab of Geophysics and spatial Oceanography, following his scientific background dominated by Biological Sciences. Since then, he has kept on developing multidisciplinary research interests at the interface of Physical & Biological Oceanography. Using in-situ data, satellite archives and numerical models at multiple spatio-temporal scales, he investigates the influence of physical processes on marine ecosystems, especially in upwelling areas and boundary currents. Additional research lines focus on the transport of tracers in the ocean, the study of marine connectivity and the characterisation of mesoscale physical structures using Lagrangian techniques. Both the oceanic circulation and biogeochemical cycles exhibit important natural variability, which impacts in turn marine resources and ecosystem services. His research studies some of these complex interactions, which are also affected by global climate change and increasing human perturbations to natural systems.