Préfacé
IX
an indicator of global warming. To this end there is the need to pool together the
different data sets available and at the same time it is crucial to acquire time sériés
of the Ross Sea characteristics long enough to be able to estimate its contribution
to the Southern Océan System as a whole.
The International Conférence on the Oceanography of the Ross Sea developed
a number of topics laid out in seven work sessions. We started with a general
description and discussion of the physical oceanography of the Southern Océan
and of its most important dynamic feature, the Antarctic Circumpolar Current.
Then, we zoomed in and looked at the Ross Sea, the focus of the interest of most
of us, in terms of its hydrological as well as its biogeochemical characteristics, and
of its circulation. We finished with a session on remote sensing, which is a way to
reconnect local analysis to the big picture of the circulation, and, more generally
of the overall climatic conditions of the Southern Océan, of its Pacific sector, and,
in particular, once again, of our area of interest: the Ross Sea.
The work discussed over 5 days has involved, and is still involving, more than
120 researchers, and has provided a quite exhaustive picture of the oceanography
of the Ross Sea. At the same time, présentations, discussions and round tables
hâve made us aware of a number of still open questions, whose answers will provide a more complété understanding of how the Ross Sea works as a dynamic and
ecological System. Also, in this sense, we believe we can view the conférence as a
success, since it has provided us with some issues which will be our research challenges for the future.
December 1998
G. Spezie
G.M.R. Manzella
IX
an indicator of global warming. To this end there is the need to pool together the
different data sets available and at the same time it is crucial to acquire time sériés
of the Ross Sea characteristics long enough to be able to estimate its contribution
to the Southern Océan System as a whole.
The International Conférence on the Oceanography of the Ross Sea developed
a number of topics laid out in seven work sessions. We started with a general
description and discussion of the physical oceanography of the Southern Océan
and of its most important dynamic feature, the Antarctic Circumpolar Current.
Then, we zoomed in and looked at the Ross Sea, the focus of the interest of most
of us, in terms of its hydrological as well as its biogeochemical characteristics, and
of its circulation. We finished with a session on remote sensing, which is a way to
reconnect local analysis to the big picture of the circulation, and, more generally
of the overall climatic conditions of the Southern Océan, of its Pacific sector, and,
in particular, once again, of our area of interest: the Ross Sea.
The work discussed over 5 days has involved, and is still involving, more than
120 researchers, and has provided a quite exhaustive picture of the oceanography
of the Ross Sea. At the same time, présentations, discussions and round tables
hâve made us aware of a number of still open questions, whose answers will provide a more complété understanding of how the Ross Sea works as a dynamic and
ecological System. Also, in this sense, we believe we can view the conférence as a
success, since it has provided us with some issues which will be our research challenges for the future.
December 1998
G. Spezie
G.M.R. Manzella