Spatiotemporal Variability of Suspended Particulate Matter in the Surface Layer of the Open Part of the Black Sea

Based on long-term measurements of the concentration of total suspended particulate matter (TSM), particulate organic carbon, chlorophyll a , and the water transparency index for 1978–1998, as well as satellite measurements of the light scattering coefficient for 1998–201, seasonal linear regression equations for the surface layer of the open part of the Black Sea have been obtained. These equations and available ship and satellite data were used to calculate the seasonal concentrations of TSM that differed from its measured concentrations by 5–22%. Satisfactory agreement was obtained between seasonal spatial distributions and intra-annual variations in the TSM concentrations determined from measured and calculated concentrations based on ship data. Several time periods of interannual variability with characteristic changes in the TSM concentration, phytoplankton biomass, water transparency, and climate conditions were identified. Anomalous changes in the structure of the plankton community in the late 1980s and early 1990s, which coincided with climatic cycles , contributed to the high phytoplankton biomass and, as a consequence, the TSM concentration. The revealed consistency of temporal changes in the TSM concentration and phytoplankton biomass indicates its important role in forming the TSM field in the surface layer in the open part of the Black Sea.