It's September again. Hence, let's take the chance to recap last year. What a year! I taught 240 hours between November and July, mentored two Final Degree Projects and a Master's Degree Project, and became the Secretary of my research Institute. At the same time, I moved and had a baby around (stopping here a second to acknowledge the help of her grandparents). Last year was hard work. Hence, I must congratulate Mara Navarro and Laura Domènech on their successful Final Degree Projects. They worked on water masses changes using the Bindoff and McDougall (1994) methodology. Mara put her focus on the South Atlantic while Laura on the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre. In addition, both of them got graded with a 10. Furthermore, yesterday, Mae Presas defended her Master Thesis about Changes in the Subantarctic and Polar Fronts crossing the Malvina's Plateau and got a high grade. Working with these students on their first hands-on research projects was awesome. I invite you all to check their work in the Mentoring section. On the more senior side, Ph.D. student Verónica Caínzos published her first article as the first author in Geophysical Research Letters. She has taken all the available Go-Ship repeated hydrographic sections at the Atlantic to infer the state of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) in the last 30 years. A super interesting work using inverse box models to estimate transport, heat, and freshwater. Following closely, Ph.D. student Cristina Arumí also published her first work on the AMOC in the Pacific Ocean. They all deserve a big congratulation. I invite you all to check their work in the Publications section. We had the VII Expanding Ocean Frontiers conference and Lynne Talley visited the SAGA research group. Prospectives for this academic year, 240 hours of teaching for Engineering Degrees, Marine Science Degree, and Master and Ph.D. Programs in Oceanography and a Master's Degree Project. Scientifically, a lot of exciting things for this year, including deploying Gliders, a cruise on the Denmark Strait, interdisciplinary and international collaborations, and organizing a meeting. So stay put and, reserve May 10-12 for the Arctic and Subarctic Ocean Fluxes Meeting that will take place in Gran Canaria
It's been a while since I last wrote a post on this blog, and sadly it was about a big loss. However, since that, a lot has happened, and I surely need to update this website. Through the end of last year and the beginning of this one, I spent most of the time between teaching and writing a book for my tenure defense. In March, my postdoc upgraded to a Viera y Clavijo contract for prestigious young researchers.
A month later, I defended to get tenured, and I'm glad to say I'm currently a teacher at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. The process of how to become one is a bit different from that of other countries: First, one needs to get a certificate from the ANECA, which is the National Quality Agency. This certificate allows you to access the competition. To get this certificate, one needs to prove a certain level of teaching, research, outreach, and education. Then, if there is an open call, to apply to it, one needs to write a teaching and research statement that shall look like a thesis book. Finally, you get a two hours slot to present and teach a lesson, plus an hour of debate with the committee. My defense was tough, I was eight months pregnant and wearing a mask but happily, I succeed in both tasks: tenure and becoming a mom. Next academic year will be busy but full of new challenges in teaching (higher teaching load), research (the lab grows) and personal!! Este fin de semana sufrimos la gran pérdida de la estudiante de doctorado Maria Casanova Masjoan en un accidente de submarinismo. Maria original de Valencia y sin tilde, era una apasionada del mar y del deporte. Estudió el Grado de Ciencias Del Mar en la Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), donde coincidimos por primera vez en la asignatura de programación en Matlab, ella como alumna y yo como profesora. Ya por aquél entonces, Maria destacaba entre sus compañeros como programadora y tenía mucho interés por la oceanografía física. Un poco más tarde entró en nuestro grupo de investigación para realizar el trabajo de fin de Master, que consistió en estudiar un remolino de la corriente de Agulhas (ver artículo). Estos remolinos son estructuras dinámicas muy interesantes que traen agua del Océano Índico al Atlántico. Este trabajo le llevó a colaborar con Jose Luis Pelegrí del Instituto de Ciencias Marinas de Barcelona y diversos científicos de la ULPGC. Posteriormente, utilizó un modelo inverso de caja para caracterizar la parte oeste del giro subtropical (ver artículo). Esto le llevó a realizar su primera estancia de investigación en la Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) donde yo llevaba dos años de postdoc, para trabajar con el Dr. Terrence Joyce. Maria estaba muy entusiasmada por esta oportunidad. Allí conoció a varios jóvenes investigadores y a algunos investigadores noruegos con los que se cruzarían más adelante en su camino. Una vez dominada la técnica del modelo inverso, Maria trabajó con los datos de RAPROCAN, una campaña hidrográfica que se hace en Canarias liderada por el Instituto Español de Oceanografía (IEO) de Tenerife. A Maria le encantaba salir de campaña y mostraba su entusiasmo voluntariando para ir en cada ocasión. Su estudio sobre la circulación en Canarias contribuyó a dar la primera descripción detallada de la circulación al este del Archipiélago (ver artículo). Además, participó con Pedro Vélez Belchí del IEO en el desarrollo de otra publicación sobre el tema (ver artículo). Maria realizó dos estancias más, una en el National Oceanography Centre, Southampton para trabajar con Yvonne Firing y aprender una técnica nueva relevante para el proyecto SAGA, y otra en el Marine and Freshwater Research Institute de Islandia (MFRI). En esta segunda, Maria vino a trabajar conmigo, y juntas describimos el flujo de agua atlántica alrededor de Islandia. Ella observó un aumento en la temperatura e intensidad de la corriente en los últimos 25 años, algo muy importante para el clima del país (ver articulo). En este trabajo, colaboramos con investigadores del grupo de investigación de Bob Pickart (WHOI), con investigadores del grupo de investigación de Kjetil Våge (Universidad de Bergen, Noruega) y con investigadores del MFRI. Maria tenía un futuro prometedor como científica, pero además era una amante del deporte al aire libre y lo mismo podrías encontrarla frente al ordenador que en una tabla de surf, con una raqueta de crosminton, buceando,... o incluso mezclando algunas de estas actividades. Siempre estará en nuestra memoria como la persona joven, alegre y entusiasta que era. ----- This weekend we suffered the big loss of the Ph.D. student Maria Casanova Masjoan in a scuba diving accident. Maria without an accent, was originally from Valencia and loved the sea and the sports. She studied the Degree in Marine Science at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC) where we first coincided in the Matlab-Programming subject, she as a student and me as a teacher. By then, Maria already stood out between her classmates as a sharp programmer and had a big interest in Physical Oceanography. A bit later, she joined our research group to work on her Master thesis which consisted of studying an Agulhas Ring (see article) These rings are very interesting dynamic structures that bring water from the Indian Ocean into the Atlantic Ocean. This work led her to collaborate with Jose Luis Pelegrí from the Instituto de Ciencias Marinas of Barcelona and several researchers from the ULPGC. Later, she used an inverse box model to characterize the western side of the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre (see article). This took her to her first research stay at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), where I had been two years working as a postdoc, to work with Dr. Terrence Joyce. Maria was really excited with this opportunity. There she met a couple of new young colleagues and some Norwegian researchers that would cross path with her in the future. Once she dominated the inverse box model technique, Maria worked with the data from the RAPROCAN hydrographic cruises that take place in the Canary Islands and are lead by the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO), Tenerife. Maria loved going to sea and she showed her enthusiasm by volunteering to go at any chance available. Her research about the circulation around the Canary Islands was the first detailed description of the circulation at the eastern side of the archipelago (see article). In addition, she collaborated with Pedro Vélez Belchí from the IEO in another publication on the same topic (see article). Maria made two more research stays, one at the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton to work with Yvonne Firing and learn a new technique relevant for the SAGA project, and another at the Marine and Freshwater Research Insitute of Iceland (MFRI). In this second, Maria came to Iceland to work with me, and together we describe the flow of Atlantic Water around Iceland. She observes an increase in the temperature and intensity of the current in the last 25 years, something very important for the country (see article). in this work, she collaborated with researchers from Bob Pickart's research group (WHOI), from Kjetil Våge's research group (University of Bergen, Norway), and with researchers from the MFRI. Maria had a promising bright future as a scientist but also was a lover of outdoor sports and the same way you could find her on the computer, on a surf board, playing crossminton, diving,... or even mixing some of the previous.
She will always be in our memory as the young, happy, and enthusiastic person she was. El jueves pasado comenzaron las primeras jornadas de proyecto Mac-Clima y el viernes las sesiones divulgativas del mismo. El proyecto tiene como finalidad dar un impulso institucional-cientifico y social en la cooperación contra el Cambio Climático en la zona de la macaronesia. La macaronesia engloba los archipiélagos de Azores, Madeira, Canarias y Cabo Verde, y países la zona noroeste de África (Mauritania y Senegal). Nuestro grupo de investigación en Oceanografía Física, la Unidad Asociada Océano y Clima que vincula a Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria con el Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas y que está enmarcado dentro del Instituto de Oceanografía y Cambio Global es parte de este proyecto y cooperará con otros científicos en el desarrollo de medidas sistemáticas para medir el cambio climático de la macaronesia. Ayer día de los océanos fue la segunda jornada divulgativa del proyecto. Así que estas se centraron en la parte de cambio climático relacionada con el océano. El Dr.Javier Aristegui habló de como remover CO2 de la atmósfera, y tras él hablé de la subida de la temperatura registrada en las aguas de la cuenca Canaria y el Atlántico subtropical.Si quieren volver a ver la charla de Javier o mi charla la tienen en Facebook (La mía en el minuto 49). Quizás debí haber puesto este post antes, pero no se preocupen las charlas se colgarán en la web del proyecto en cuanto sea posible y aún puede registrarse y participar en directo en las charlas divulgaticas de Aridane y Miriam. Les dejo el link pero pueden verlas también en directo en el Facebook del Consejo Insular de Energía. Links a las noticias: - Info Norte Digital - Eldiario.es -La Provincia Diario de Las Palmas - Canarias Diario - Canarias Noticias ---------------------------------------------ENGLISH---------------------------------------------
Last Thursday the kick-off meetings of the Mac-Clima project started and on Friday the outreach talks of it. The project pursues to push forward the scientific institutions and social cooperations needed to fight Climate Change in the Macaronesian area. The jacaronesia englobes the archipelagos of Azores, Madeira, Canaries and Cabo Verd, and countries of Northwest Africa (Mauritania y Senegal). Our physical oceanography research group the Unidad Asociada Océano y Clima that links the Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria with the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas and which is framed within the Instituto de Oceanografía y Cambio Global, is part of this project and will cooperate with other scientists in the development of the systematic measurements required to understand climate change on the Macaronesia. Yesterday was Ocean's day and the second outreach event of the project. Therefore they focussed in how climate change affects the ocean. Dr. Javier Aristegui spoke about different ways to remove CO2 from the atmosphere, and after him, I spoke about the sea temperature rise observed in the Canary Basin and the Subtropical Gyre. If you want to revisit these talks, you'll find them on Facebook (mine at minute 49). Maybe I should have written this before, but don't worry the talks will be uploaded to the project's website and you still are on time to register and participate in the last talks from Aridane and Miriam. I leave you here the link but it can also be watched live on the Facebook del Consejo Insular de Energía. ----------------------------------------------English here --------------------------------------------
Last Xmas I saw a call on the APECS website looking for early career researchers willing to participate in the review of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report (AR6), Working Group I (WGI), Second Order Draft (SOD). This opportunity came also with a course to understand how the scientific review process for reports addressed to policymakers is. So, I sign up for it, and eventually, after a selection process based on our knowledge and career stage, I was chosen. Yesterday, I finally submitted my review, though I must confess I did most of the work during the Easter holidays as I'm now teaching at the university and we are in this peculiar COVID-19 situation. This experience has been very interesting and nourishing. I had the chance of reading part of the report that will be released the next year, seeing how the review takes place and understanding the different stages existing on the elaboration of such an important document. The IPCC report is created by the United Nations Environment Program and is a state of the scientific knowledge on climate change. It is a key element in international negotiations to mitigate climate change. Therefore, it is not an easy task to review part of it, as it has been written and read by a large list of good scientists. However, as always fresh eyes see new things and help to improve the document, so the reviewers play an important role in the development. This was a great opportunity and I wasn't the only one thinking it, the local media also thought it was cool having a local young scientist involved in this (see beneath). ----------------------------------------------Español aquí -------------------------------------------- La pasada navidad vi un llamamiento en la página web de APECS en la que se buscaban jóvenes investigadores que quisieran participar en el proceso de revisión del Sexto Informe de Evaluación (AR6), Grupo de trabajo I (WGI), segundo borrador (SOD) del Grupo Intergubernamental de Expertos sobre el Cambio Climátio (IPCC). Esta oportunidad venía acompañada con un curso para comprender el proceso de revisión científica de los informes que se dirigen hacia los responsables políticos. Así que me apunté y eventualmente, desupés de un proceso de selección basado en nuestros conocimentos y etapa en la carrera, me eligieron. Ayer, finalmente envié mi revisión, aunque he de confesar que hice la mayor parte del trabajo en semana santa dado que ahora doy clases en la universidad y estamos en esta situación peculiar del COVID-19. Esta experiencia ha sido muy interesante; tuve la opirtunidad de de leer parte del informe que se publicará el año que viene, dever como se realiza el proceso de revision y de comprender las distintas etapas existentes en la elaboración de este importante informe. El informe del IPCC lo crea el Programa Mediambienta del las naciones unidas y es una síntesis del conocimiento actual de cambio climático. Es un elemenot clave en las negociaciones internacionales de la lucha contra el cambio climático. Por tanto, no es tarea sencilla revisarlo,ya que está escrito y leído por una larga lista de buenos científicos. Sin embargo, como siempre ojos nuevos puede ver nuevas cosas y ayudan a mejorar el documento, así que los revisores juegan un papel importante en el desarrollo del documento. Esto ha sido una gran oportunidad y no soy la única que lo piensa, los medios de comunicación locales también pensaron que era interesante tener una joven científica local involucrada en esto (ver abajo). -------------------------- Noticas/media: - IOCAG. - Seed Talks podcast. - Compilación del gabinete de prensa ULPGC - Canarias 7 - La Provincia - El diario - radio cadenaSer minuto 32. Hoy se publica ca un reportaje donde los científicos mostramos nuestra preocupación por esta crisis sanitaria. Lo primero es evitar las infecciones, todos de acuerdo, pero ¿qué pasará luego?, muchos tememos que la ciencia se verá afectada por la situación económica posterior y por la parada en las salidas de campo. ¿Volveremos a la situación del 2008?¿Habrá que emigrar de nuevo?
Noticia aquí Every year around these months in the Canary Islands the winds shift to easterly/southeasterly leading to African dust events. These events are what we call Calima and jokingly when it happens we say that our neighbors are cleaning their carpets. These events have surprised some of our tourists on their winter holidays as when they happen our skies became denser, looking like a yellowish to reddish fog and the temperatures are usually high. The GOB and GEOGAR research groups of the IOCAG have been studying these events for many years. They have seen that these events bring dust from Western Sahara, Morocco, Algeria, Mali, and Mauritania. The deposition of these particles on the sea leads to phyto and zooplankton blooms affecting the biological carbon pump and also to an increase in the nitrogen fixation done by the diazotrophs. In land, these depositions nourish the floors. These dust events are so interesting that some other research groups study them further southwest like in the PIRATA array.
These days we are going through one of these events (though the pictures beneath are from 2018) and I recall some of the lectures of my undergrad in marine sciences as I prepare to start lecturing. Mañana comienza mi participación en la segunda edición del proyecto Mujeres Científicas Canarias una iniciativa de la Consejería de Educación, Universidades, Cultura y Deportes del Gobierno de Canarias, a través de la Dirección General de Ordenación, Innovación y Calidad, con la colaboración de la Fundación Canaria Observatorio de Temisas y la Asociación de Investigadores de Las Palmas (INVEPA). El proyecto quiere acercar a los colegios de educación primaria y secundaria las actividades realizadas por distintas mujeres científicas que desempeñan su labor en canarias. La idea es despertar vocaciones y acercar a los jóvenes el mundo científico y tecnológico. La primera edición comenzó en el curso escolar 2018/19 con la participación de 37 centros educativos entre Tenerife y Gran Canaria. Para esta segunda edición ¡ya son 70 los centros participantes y 14 científicas más que en la edición anterior!. Starting the second editon of the project Mujeres Cientifícas Canarias (Canary female scientists, english below) Tomorrow I'll start to participate in the second edition of the project Mujeres Cientifícas Canarias (Canary female scientists) funded through the Consejería de Educación, Universidades, Cultura y Deportes of the Gobierno de Canarias and with the collaboration of the Foundation Observatorio Temisas and the Association of Las Palmas researchers (INVEPA).
The project aims to outreach the work of diverse female scientists working in the Canary Islands to young students (school and high school). The idea is awakening vocations and making accessible for them knowledge of the technologies and advancements taking place in their community. The project started in the academic year 2018/19 with the participation of 37 public schools located in Tenerife and Gran Canaria. Now in its second edition, 70 schools are participating and 14 scientists more! Last Thursday, Halloween's eve, I was awarded the 2019 early career EuroGOOS Kostas Nittis Medal. This medal was established in memory of EuroGOOS Secretary General and strategic leader Dr. Kostas Nittis (1964-2014). Dr. Kostas was an operational physical oceanographer who focused his research on the Mediterranean Sea. This led him to become the chair of the MedGOOS in 2007 and the Secretary-General of the EuroGOOS network in 2012.
The Kostas Nittis Medal aims to support the participation of early career marine scientists in relevant conferences and events. The awardee is thus given a chance to present their research work at relevant events, building a professional network, gaining real life experience and reaching out to potential research and technological partners and/or future employers. So, I'll be in Brussels by the end of the year to pick this award and present my work at the kick-off meeting of the newly funded EuroSEA Horizon2020 project!!! Last month I had the great opportunity of traveling to Oahu, Hawaii for the decadal meeting OceanObs'19. This meeting was different from the usual scientific meetings I have been going to. This time the participants were not only scientists but also people from the industry, engineers, native people from the Pacific Ocean, outreach people.
In the meeting, we talked about the last decade of observations but also on how we, as a community of oceanographers were engaging with our stakeholders. There was a big consensus in data sharing. There is also a big need to keep on measuring the ocean, pursuing a more complete and sustained network of ocean observations. In particular the meeting conclusions were that we need to:
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