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Abstract
Phytoplankton play a key role in biogeochemical cycling and climate processes. Precise quantitative measurements of chlorophyll‐a (Chl‐a), a measure of phytoplankton biomass, have only been available globally since 1997 from the Sea‐viewing Wide Field‐of‐view Sensor (SeaWiFS). In the North Atlantic, semi‐quantitative measurements of chlorophyll (Phytoplankton Color Index, PCI) for >50 years have been collected by the Continuous Plankton Recorder. Here we demonstrate a significant correlation between PCI and SeaWiFS Chl‐a from 1997–2002. Combining both time series allows quantification of the stepwise increase in biomass in the mid‐1980s; this regime shift corresponded to a 60% increase in Chl‐a. This was a result of an 80% increase in Chl‐a during winter, alongside a smaller summer increase. This new high‐resolution data set on the monthly variation of Chl‐a in the North Atlantic since 1948 is now available for the development and validation of climate models, and for interpretation of ecological changes related to climate.
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