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Science Webinars: Ocean Thinking

SPURS cruise path
The SPURS project represents the collaborative efforts between a diverse group of scientists spanning national and international borders, from multiple organizations. These include, but are not limited to, physical oceanography experts and climate scientists from NASA, researchers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, and research professors from the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, to name a few.

Ocean Thinking: Inside and Outside the Box
Julius Busecke
Changes In Latitude
Presented by Julius Busecke – September 17, 2013
It may be easy to think about studying the ocean by looking at a small section of it, but the reality is that water is constantly on the move. While highlighting his own research within the SPURS area, Julius will demonstrate how the atmosphere affects the water cycle both on land and in the ocean, and how the movement of seawater plays a crucial role in our understanding global ocean circulation.

Julius Busecke is a Graduate Research Assistant at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University. He received his B.Sc. from the University of Kiel, Germany in 2010.

Stephen Riser

From Skin to Deep
Presented by Stephen Riser – September 24, 2013
The atmosphere is not the only thing that affects the ever-changing ocean. Using in-water measurement tools such as profiling floats, as well as satellite data from SMOS and Aquarius instruments during the SPURS mission cruises, Dr. Riser has examined salinity changes in the SPURS area from the surface of the water to the depths of the ocean. Ultimately, Dr. Riser is seeking to investigate long term changes – by using a combination of observations from above and below.

Dr. Stephen Riser is a Professor in the School of Oceanography at the University of Washington. His primary interests are in the ocean's role in climate, and in deducing the general circulation of the ocean and ocean/atmosphere/ice interactions through direct observations of the ocean circulation. He is also increasingly thinking about the interactions between physical aspects of the ocean circulation and biogeochemical properties of the ocean.

Tom Farrar

Balanced Budget? Oh, Buoy!
Presented by Tom Farrar – October 1, 2013
Determining ocean salinity trends is not a simple task. With differences in the amount of water, heat, and salt constantly coming and going, as well as gradients across depth and latitude, it’s a challenging task to undertake. Dr. Farrar will share what data from a fixed mooring within the SPURS area can tell us about the overall "salt budget" for one of the saltiest parts of the world’s ocean.

Dr. Tom Farrar is an Associate Scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. His research interests include air-sea interaction and exchange; dynamics and thermodynamics of the upper ocean; tropical dynamics and equatorial waves; oceanic internal waves and eddies; satellite oceanography; and ocean observing and instrumentation. These interests are pursued from an observational perspective using in situ observations, satellite observations, and, in some cases, laboratory and numerical models to test hypotheses and test or formulate simplified physical models that aid understanding.