@article{fdi:010092018, title = {{D}rivers of growth and decay of {S}argassum in the {T}ropical {A}tlantic : a {L}agrangian approach}, author = {{P}odlejski, {W}. and {B}erline, {L}. and {J}ouanno, {J}ulien and {B}arrier, {N}icolas and {L}ett, {C}hristophe}, editor = {}, language = {{ENG}}, abstract = {{T}he proliferation of {S}argassum in the {T}ropical {A}tlantic has occurred almost every year since 2011, but a strong variability of biomass is observed among years. {E}ssential knowledge about the drivers of {S}argassum growth and decay is still lacking to explain this interannual variability. {B}enefiting from accurate basin scale {S}argassum detections provided by remote sensing, and from physical and biogeochemical ocean simulations, we developed a {L}agrangian drift-growth model to simulate {S}argassum distribution over the period 2016-2020. {T}he resulting trajectories and biomass time series of {S}argassum aggregates were analyzed to highlight the main limiting factors of growth and decay. {T}he nitrogen and phosphorous concentrations are found to be weakly restrictive compared to physical limiting factors, especially the temperature. {I}n particular, the warm waters found off northern {B}razil appear to be instrumental in triggering the end of seasonal growth of {S}argassum. {T}he timing of the seasonal warming of this region strongly impacts the quantities of {S}argassum simulated each year. {T}his suggests that this region should be monitored to anticipate the development of {S}argassum and resulting strandings.}, keywords = {{L}agrangian simulation ; {G}rowth model ; {T}ropical {N}orth atlantic ; {A}lternative {F}loating {A}lgae {I}ndex ; {T}ime series ; {N}utrients ; {ATLANTIQUE} ; {ZONE} {TROPICALE}}, booktitle = {}, journal = {{P}rogress in {O}ceanography}, volume = {229}, numero = {}, pages = {103364 [10 ]}, ISSN = {0079-6611}, year = {2024}, DOI = {10.1016/j.pocean.2024.103364}, URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010092018}, }