[1] Simultaneous observations of upper-ocean bubble clouds, and dissolved gaseous nitrogen (N 2 ) and oxygen (O 2 ) from three winter storms are presented and analyzed. The data were collected on the Canadian Surface Ocean Lower Atmosphere Study (C-SOLAS) mooring located near Ocean Station Papa (OSP) at 50°N, 145°W in the NE Pacific during winter of 2003/2004. The bubble field was measured using an upward looking 200 kHz echosounder. Direct estimates of bubble mediated gas fluxes were made using assumed bubble size spectra and the upward looking echosounder data. A one-dimensional biogeochemical model was used to help compare data and various existing models of bubble mediated air-sea gas exchange. The direct bubble flux calculations show an approximate quadratic/cubic dependence on mean bubble penetration depth. After scaling from N 2 /O 2 to carbon dioxide, near surface, nonsupersaturating, air-sea transfer rates, K T , for U 10 > 12 m s −1 fall between quadratic and cubic relationships. Estimates of the subsurface bubble induced air injection flux, V T , show an approximate quadratic/cubic dependence on mean bubble penetration depth. Both K T and V T are much higher than those measured during Hurricane Frances over the wind speed range 12 < U 10 < 23 m s −1 . This result implies that over the open ocean and this wind speed range, older and more developed seas which occur during winter storms are more effective in exchanging gases between the atmosphere and ocean than younger less developed seas which occur during the rapid passage of a hurricane.Citation: Vagle, S., C. McNeil, and N. Steiner (2010), Upper ocean bubble measurements from the NE Pacific and estimates of their role in air-sea gas transfer of the weakly soluble gases nitrogen and oxygen,

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The carbon system of the western Arctic Ocean is undergoing a rapid transition as sea ice extent and thickness decline. These processes are dynamically forcing the region, with unknown consequences for CO2 fluxes and carbonate mineral saturation states, particularly in the coastal regions where sensitive ecosystems are already under threat from multiple stressors. In October 2011, persistent wind‐driven upwelling occurred in open water along the continental shelf of the Beaufort Sea in the western Arctic Ocean. During this time, cold (<−1.2°C), salty (>32.4) halocline water—supersaturated with respect to atmospheric CO2 (pCO2 > 550 μatm) and undersaturated in aragonite (Ωaragonite < 1.0) was transported onto the Beaufort shelf. A single 10‐day event led to the outgassing of 0.18–0.54 Tg‐C and caused aragonite undersaturations throughout the water column over the shelf. If we assume a conservative estimate of four such upwelling events each year, then the annual flux to the atmosphere would be 0.72–2.16 Tg‐C, which is approximately the total annual sink of CO2 in the Beaufort Sea from primary production. Although a natural process, these upwelling events have likely been exacerbated in recent years by declining sea ice cover and changing atmospheric conditions in the region, and could have significant impacts on regional carbon budgets. As sea ice retreat continues and storms increase in frequency and intensity, further outgassing events and the expansion of waters that are undersaturated in carbonate minerals over the shelf are probable.

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a b s t r a c tNumerical modeling of three-dimensional estuarine circulation is often challenging due to complex flow features and strong density gradients. In this paper the skill of a specific model is assessed against a highresolution data set, obtained in a river-dominated mesotidal estuary with autonomous underwater vehicles and a shipborne winched profiler. The measurements provide a detailed view of the salt wedge dynamics of the Columbia River estuary. Model skill is examined under contrasting forcing conditions, covering spring freshet and autumn low flow conditions, as well as spring and neap tides. The data set provides a rigorous benchmark for numerical circulation models. This benchmark is used herein to evaluate an unstructured grid circulation model, based on linear finite element and finite volume formulations. Advection of momentum is treated with an Eulerian-Lagrangian scheme. After the model's sensitivity to grid resolution and time step is examined, a detailed skill assessment is provided for the best model configuration. The simulations reproduce the timing and tidal asymmetry of salinity intrusion. Sharp density gradients, however, tend to be smoothed out affecting vertical mixing and gravitational circulation. We show that gravitational salt transport is underestimated in the model, but is partially compensated through tidal effects. The discrepancy becomes most pronounced when the stratification is strongest, i.e., under high river discharge and neap tide conditions.