David A. Mucciarone

Stanford University | SU · Earth System Science

Coral reef roughness produces turbulent boundary layers and bottom stresses that are important for reef metabolism monitoring and reef circulation modeling. However, there is some uncertainty as to whether field methods for estimating bottom stress are applicable in shallow canopy environments as found on coral reefs. Friction velocities (u∗ ${u}_{...

Ice sheet mass loss from Antarctica is greatest in the Amundsen Sea sector, where “warm” modified Circumpolar Deep Water moves onto the continental shelf and melts and thins the bases of ice shelves hundreds of meters below the sea surface. We use nearly 1000 paired salinity and oxygen isotope analyses of seawater samples collected on seven expedit...

Ice sheet mass loss from Antarctica is greatest in the Amundsen Sea sector, where ‘warm’ deep seawater melts and thins the bases of ice shelves hundreds of meters below the sea surface. We use nearly 1000 paired salinity and oxygen isotope analyses of seawater samples collected on seven expeditions from 1994 to 2020 to produce a time series of glac...

Coral reef sessile organisms inhabiting cryptic spaces and cavities of the reef matrix perform vital and varied functional roles but are often understudied in comparison to those on exposed surfaces. Here, we assess the composition of cryptobenthic taxa from three remote tropical reef sites (Central Indian Ocean) alongside a suite of in situ enviro...

Tierra del Fuego in Argentina is a unique location to examine past Holocene wind variability since it intersects the core of the Southern HemisphereWesterlyWinds (SHWW). TheSHWWare the most powerful prevailing winds on Earth. Their variation plays a role in regulating atmospheric CO2 levels and rainfall amounts and distribution, both today and in t...

Climate change is causing decreases in pH and dissolved oxygen (DO) in coastal ecosystems. Canopy‐forming giant kelp can locally increase DO and pH through photosynthesis, with the most pronounced effect expected in surface waters where the bulk of kelp biomass resides. However, limited observations are available from waters in canopies and measure...

Coral reefs are hydrodynamically rough, creating turbulent boundary layers that transport and mix various scalars that impact reef processes and also can be used to monitor reef health. Often reef boundary layer characteristics derived from a single instrument are assumed to accurately represent the study site. This approach relies on two assumptio...

The anatomy of the Last Glacial Termination (T1) in the southern mid-latitudes, and its relationship with changes in the Southern Westerly Winds (SWW), offers empirical constraints for understanding the mechanisms involved in the transition from the Last Glacial Maximum into the current interglacial. Northwestern Patagonia (40°-44°S) is a sensitive...

Polar marine ecosystems are particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Warming temperatures, freshening seawater, and disruption to sea‐ice formation potentially all have cascading effects on food webs. New approaches are needed to better understand spatiotemporal interactions among biogeochemical processes at the base of Southern Oc...

Oceanography and limnology projects often require the collection of water samples for chemical analysis. Manual water sample collection is labor-intensive and often difficult, especially in remote locations or during nighttime hours. Here we describe a compact and inexpensive autonomous submersible multiport water sampler (AutoSampler) that is larg...

Kelp forests are among the world's most productive marine ecosystems, and they have the potential to locally ameliorate ocean acidification (OA). In order to understand the contribution of kelp metabolism to local biogeochemistry, we must first quantify the natural variability and the relative contributions of physical and biological drivers to bio...

Given the recent trend towards establishing very large marine protected areas (MPAs) and the high potential of these to contribute to global conservation targets, we review outcomes of the last decade of marine conservation research in the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), one of the largest MPAs in the world. The BIOT MPA consists of the atol...

We present an inexpensive autonomous underwater pumping system that is lightweight, compact, independent, and versatile, making it easy to deploy in a multitude of settings. This system can be used to pump water into discrete and flow-through sensor systems. With the exception of the custom built pressure case housing, this system can be fabricated...

Flow-through systems are often used in aquarium and aquaculture facilities, laboratories, and aboard research vessels and other mobile systems to collect, analyze, and monitor water properties as they vary across time and location. These systems most often intake water from a single source and deliver it to a suite of flow-through sensors after whi...

Guide and method for rebuilding vacuum pumps.

Carbon fluxes on coral reefs (net community production and net community calcification) aggregate the collective activity of all coral reef community members. This integrated approach provides powerful community-level insights, but is unable to resolve the finer-scale contributions of different reef functional groups to the community-scale rates. T...

Pb-dated sediment cores and surface sediments from Lake Chapala (LC), Mexico, were analyzed to assess the temporal trends in concentrations and fluxes of persistent organic pollutants (POPs: PAHs, PCBs and PBDEs). Total sediment concentrations of PAHs (95-1,482 ng g⁻¹), PCBs (9-27 ng g⁻¹) and PBDEs (0.2-2.5 ng g⁻¹) were indicative of moderate to in...

A 492-year-long, continuous δ¹⁸O time series from a massive Porites coral colony in Ta'u, American Samoa, records contrasting responses to different types of El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) through a mixed sea surface temperature and salinity signal. Currently, conventional El Niño (La Niña) events generate cold and salty (warm and fresh) anoma...

The Southern Westerly Winds (SWW) are the surface expression of geostrophic winds that encircle the southern mid-latitudes. In conjunction with the Southern Ocean, they establish a coupled system that not only controls climate in the southern third of the world, but is also closely connected to the position of the Intertropical Convergence Zone and...

Coastal vegetated habitats can be important sinks of organic carbon (Corg) and mitigate global warming by sequestering significant quantities of atmospheric CO2 and storing sedimentary Corg for long periods, although their Corg burial and storage capacity may be affected by on-going sea level rise and human intervention. Geochemical data from publi...

The phytoplankton bloom in the Ross Sea is the largest in spatial extent and one of the most productive in Antarctica, yet the fate of the summer bloom remains poorly understood. Here we present carbon system data from the first biogeochemical process cruise to be conducted in both the western and central Ross Sea during late summer (February-March...

Kelp forests are among the world's most productive marine ecosystems, yet little is known about their biogeochemistry. This study presents a 14-month time series (July 2013–August 2014) of surface and benthic dissolved inorganic carbon and total alkalinity measurements, along with accompanying hydrographic measurements, from six locations within a...

Kelp forests are among the world's most productive marine ecosystems, yet little is known about their biogeochemistry. This study presents a fourteen-month time series (July 2013–August 2014) of surface and benthic dissolved inorganic carbon and total alkalinity measurements, along with accompanying hydrographic measurements, from six locations wit...

High dissolved CO2 concentrations in coastal ecosystems are a common occurrence due to a combination of large ecosystem metabolism, shallow water, and long residence times. Many important coastal species may have adapted to this natural variability over time, but eutrophication and ocean acidification may be perturbing the water chemistry beyond th...

Predicting when surface waters of the Ross Sea and Southern Ocean will become undersaturated with respect to biogenic carbonate minerals is challenging in part due to the lack of baseline high-resolution carbon system data. Here we present ~ 1700 surface total alkalinity measurements from the Ross Sea and along a transect between the Ross Sea and s...

Shallow back reefs commonly experience greater thermal and biogeochemical variability owing to a combination of coral community metabolism, environmental forcing, flow regime, and water depth. We present results from a high-resolution (sub-hourly to sub-daily) hydrodynamic and biogeochemical study, along with a coupled long-term (several months) hy...

Predicting when surface waters of the Ross Sea and Southern Ocean will become undersaturated with respect to biogenic carbonate minerals is challenging in part due to the lack of baseline high resolution carbon system data. Here we present ~ 1700 surface total alkalinity measurements from the Ross Sea and along a transect between the Ross Sea and s...

We report measurements of near-monthly Δ14C and δ18O during selected decades from an east equatorial Pacific coral that grew during the past four centuries. We find that El Niño events occurred regularly during the late 1700s. During the early 1800s, El Niño events occurred less often, and La Niña conditions prevailed, which were accompanied by unp...

The West Pacific Warm Pool (WPWP) is a critical region of the global climate system that is closely linked with the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). We have generated two monthly resolved coral δ18O (δ18OCRL) records from a key region of the WPWP, the Republic of Palau (7′N, 135′E). The isotopic time series span the years 1793–2008 and 1899–200...

We present seasonal ∆14C and δ18O measurements from a Galapagos coral sequence that grew during the early 20th century. Our results show that both ∆14C and δ18O values are correlated with sea surface temperature in the Niño 3.4 region and are indicators of El Niño/Southern Oscillation. There is a significant inverse correlation between ∆14C and δ18...

Accurate predictions of how coral reefs may respond to global climate change hinge on understanding the natural variability to which these ecosystems are exposed and to which they contribute. We present high-resolution estimates of net community calcification (NCC) and net community production (NCP) from Palmyra Atoll, an uninhabited, near-pristine...

In order to correctly understand the rates and mechanisms of biogeochemical cycling along the water column, special attention must be paid to data analysis techniques. We propose a revised procedure combining precision and practicality to minimize sample handling errors that would affect the determination of both mass fluxes and the composition of...

Diel trends in carbon chemistry and hydrodynamic regimes were measured on a coral-dominated back-reef community in the Republic of Palau, western Pacific. Observed diel ranges over 5 d were pH 7.92-8.09, partial pressure of carbon dioxide 33.4-52.7 Pa, measured total alkalinity 2080-2272 µmol kg−1, total dissolved inorganic carbon 1763-1939 µmol kg...

Annual samples from two Palmyra Atoll corals (Porites lutea) that lived during the past 110 years were analyzed for radiocarbon (Δ14C) and δ18O. The Δ14C values decreased 7.6‰ from 1896 to 1953, similar to other coral records from the tropical and subtropical Pacific. Δ14C values rose from ∼−60‰ to ∼+110‰ by 1980 due to the input of bomb radiocarbo...

There is growing evidence that ocean acidification (OA) will have significantly detrimental impacts on coral reef calcification and community composition. However, the rates of coral reef response to ocean pH changes and the implications of for ecosystem resilience remain largely unknown. Our ability to make more accurate predictions of OA impacts...

Southern South America is the only large continental landmass situated in the core of the southern westerly wind field. Precipitation in the region is generally produced by frontal systems associated with surface depressions. Stronger westerlies at interannual and longer time scales promote extratropical storms, leading to an increase in precipitat...

We calculate net community production (NCP) during summer 2005-2006 and spring 2006 in the Ross Sea using multiple approaches to determine the magnitude and consistency of rates. Water column carbon and nutrient inventories and surface ocean O2/Ar data are compared to satellite-derived primary productivity (PP) estimates and 14C uptake experiments....

Situated at the southern margin of the hemispheric westerly wind belt and immediately north of the Antarctic Polar Frontal zone, Tierra del Fuego is well-positioned to monitor coupled changes in the ocean–atmosphere system of the high southern latitudes. Here we describe a Holocene paleoclimate record from sediment cores obtained from Lago Fagnano,...

We calculate net community production (NCP) during summer 2005-2006 and spring 2006 in the Ross Sea using multiple approaches to determine the magnitude and consistency of rates. Water column carbon and nutrient inventories and surface ocean O2/Ar data are compared to satellite-derived primary productivity (PP) estimates and 14C uptake experiments....

The marine sediment cores collected by the Antarctic Geological Drilling (ANDRILL) Program from sites beneath the McMurdo Ice Shelf (MIS; Core AND-1B) and in Southern McMurdo Sound (SMS; Core AND-2A) represent the most complete record to date of Neogene climate evolution proximal to the Antarctic continent. Diatom-rich lithologic units alternate wi...

Tierra del Fuego is the world's southernmost landmass outside of Antarctica. Two features of ocean circulation control the climate of Tierra del Fuego: the Southern Ocean circumpolar flow and the South Pacific Gyre. Together with Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego is the only terrestrial region directly influenced by the southern hemisphere westerly winds...

Coral paleoenvironmental records are ideal for evaluating ENSO variability on interannual to centennial time scales, particularly where historical instrumental records are limited. Here we present a composite delta18O stratigraphy from Porites lutea corals collected from several sites in the Republic of Palau. Palau is situated at a crossroads of o...

We examined controls on the carbon isotopic composition of sea ice brines and organic matter during cruises to the Ross Sea, Antarctica in November/December 1998 and November/December 2006. Brine samples were analyzed for salinity, nutrients, total dissolved inorganic carbon (SigmaCO2), and the 13C/12C ratio of SigmaCO2 (delta13CSigmaCO2). Particul...

We examined controls on the carbon isotopic composition of sea ice brines and organic matter during cruises to the Ross Sea, Antarctica in November/December 1998 and November/December 2006. Brine samples were analyzed for salinity, nutrients, total dissolved inorganic carbon (sum CO2), and the 13C/12C ratio of Sum CO2 (d13C(sum CO2)). Particulate o...

High-resolution paleoenvironmental records obtained from coral cores are powerful tools for assessing pre-instrumental ENSO behavior on interannual to centennial time scales, but the scarcity of such records limits the robust assessment of natural ENSO variability prior to the start of widespread instrumental monitoring. Here we present new delta18...

Gaining a more comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms controlling the timing and nature of Holocene climatic events in the Southern Ocean is critical to understand its role in driving global climate. Sediment drifts deposited on the Antarctic continental margin provide a unique opportunity to investigate Holocene climate due to their high se...

Deep-sea corals are found on hard substrates on seamounts and continental margins worldwide at depths of 300 to approximately 3,000 m. Deep-sea coral communities are hotspots of deep ocean biomass and biodiversity, providing critical habitat for fish and invertebrates. Newly applied radiocarbon age dates from the deep water proteinaceous corals Ger...

Standard Operating Procedures for the Stanford Stable Isotope Lab. Methods for using some legacy instrumentation that may be useful to those in the isotope community using older equipment. In addition, there are some custom instrument and components featured in this SOP manual that some may find useful.

The Southern Hemisphere westerly winds influence the spatial distribution of precipitation in southern South America and play a significant role in the global carbon cycle, yet little is known about how this important atmospheric circulation feature has varied in the past. Here, we present a sediment core record of late Holocene variability from La...

We present reconstructions of multidecadal- to centennial-scale shifts in the hydrologic balance of the northern Altiplano during the middle Holocene using stable isotopic, geochemical, and sedimentologic evidence from Lake Titicaca sediments. Large downcore changes in the δ13Corg of bulk organic matter, previously shown to be a site-specific lake-...

We investigated the oxygen isotope composition (δ18O) of shell striae from juvenile Comptopallium radula (Mollusca; Pectinidae) specimens collected live in New Caledonia. Bottom-water temperature and salinity were monitored in-situ throughout the study period. External shell striae form with a 2-day periodicity in this scallop, making it possible t...

Core JPC17B was collected from the Adélie-Drift, a nearly 300-m thick drift deposit at 140ºE along the Indian Ocean sector of the Antarctic continental shelf. Sediments consist of nearly continuously laminated diatom mud and diatom ooze, with accumulation rates on the order of 20-21 m kyr -1 based on 10 AMS radiocarbon dates. Spectral analysis was...

Radiocarbon evidence implies unappreciated longevity and slow growth rate in Gerardia spp (gold coral), a colonial zoanthid found at depths of 300 to 500 m on hard substrates such as seamount basalt and carbonate hardgrounds. Gerardia, a precious deep-sea "coral" found in the north and equatorial Pacific, can attain sizes approaching 3 m in height...

This study introduces a new method of tracing the history of nutrient loading in coastal oceans via delta(15)N analysis of organic nitrogen preserved in the skeleton of the massive Porites coral. Four coral cores were collected in Bali, Indonesia, from reefs exposed to high levels of fertilizers in agricultural run-off, from lagoonal corals impacte...

We investigate the environmental and biological controls on oxygen isotope ratios in the shells of modern Pecten maximus bivalves collected alive in the Bay of Brest (France). Seasonal δ18O profiles, obtained by drilling the daily calcite ridges deposited at the surface of the left valve, were compared with in situ measurements of temperature and s...

We examined δ13C values of shallow and deep-water scallop shells as well as δ13C of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) from the Bay of Brest in western Brittany. Time series of shell calcite δ13C do not reflect seasonal variation in seawater δ13C, but rather show a consistent pattern of decreasing δ13C with age, suggesting a metabolic effect rather t...

Ocean Drilling Program Leg 188, Prydz Bay, East Antarctica is part of a larger initiative to explore the Cenozoic history of the Antarctic Ice Sheet through direct drilling and sampling of the continental margins. In this paper, we present stable isotopic results from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Site 1167 located on the Prydz Channel Trough Mouth...

We present and compare AMS-14C geochronologies for sediment cores recovered from Lake Titicaca, South America. Radiocarbon dates from three core sites constrain the timing of late Quaternary paleoenvironmental changes in the Central Andes and highlight the site-specific factors that limit the radiocarbon geochronometer. With the exception of mid-Ho...

Bivalves skeletons are able to produce great geochemical proxies. But general calibration of those proxies are based on approximate time basis because of misunderstanding of growth rhythm. In this context, the Great scallop, Pecten maximus, appears to be a powerful tool as a daily growth deposit has been clearly identified for this species (Chauvau...

Easter Island (also known as Rapa Nui and Isla Pascua) lies within the southeastern Pacific high-pressure system, a feature that along with the Indonesian Low comprises the atmospheric dipole that defines the Southern Oscillation. Sea surface temperatures (SST) in the southeastern Pacific influence this limb of the basin-wide Walker circulation by...

Modeling studies have shown that the Southern Ocean plays an important role in the global carbon cycle and is a relatively large sink for anthropogenic CO2. The formation, sinking, and eventual burial of particulate organic matter (POM) is a crucial component of this cycle, which removes gaseous carbon from the short-term atmospheric system and dep...

Ocean Drilling Program Leg 188, Prydz Bay, East Antarctica is part of a larger initiative to explore the Cenozoic history of the Antarctic Ice Sheet through direct drilling and sampling of the continental margins. In this paper, we present stable isotopic results from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Site 1167 located on the Prydz Channel Trough Mouth...

Sediment cores from Lake Titicaca contain proxy records of past lake level and hydrologic change on the South American Altiplano. Large downcore shifts in the isotopic composition of organic carbon, C/N, wt.%Corg, %CaCO3, and % biogenicsilica illustrate the dynamic changes in lake level that occurred during the past 20,000 years. The first cores ta...

Antarctic continental margin sites are important for marine geological studies of climatic change and the associated expansion/contraction of the ice sheets. Yet there are few stable isotopic records from the continental margin because foraminifers are generally absent or poorly preserved. Such records are necessary to address long-standing questio...

Using high-resolution seismic reflection profiling and dating of (1) shallow marine vibracores and (2) sediments collected from uplifted marine terraces we reconstruct the tectonic history and sediment accumulation patterns of Holocene to late Pleistocene warm-temperate to subtropical carbonates in the southern Gulf of California, Mexico. The study...