The scientist Lenna Ortiz participated in an international internship in Toulouse, strengthening key alliances to understand the expansion of low-oxygen zones in the southeastern Pacific. Aysén. - In a notable international scientific collaboration, Dr.
(c) Lenna Ortiz, a researcher at the regional scientific center CIEP, recently participated in an internship at the European Center for Research and Advanced Training in Scientific Computing (CERFACS) in Toulouse, France. Alongside specialists from Chile and Europe, she addressed one of the most critical phenomena of the current ocean: the expansion of areas with low oxygen content. Together with doctoral student Malaeka Robo and a team of international researchers, Dr.
(c) Lenna Ortiz contributed to developing strategies to enhance the understanding of the variability of the oxygen minimum zone off the coast of Chile. This work is part of the ONBOARD project (Omics and Nitrogen Biogeochemistry Applied for Modeling in Chile), which is included in the ECOS-ANID 2025 Scientific Cooperation Program, as well as the PATSER and CLAP projects, led by CIEP and CEAZA, respectively. “During the internship, the team advanced discussions on innovative methodologies to integrate bacterial processes into biogeochemical models coupled with hydrodynamic models, specifically the CROCO-BioEBUS model.
High-resolution simulations were also analyzed to study the role of mesoscale eddies—large oceanic structures—in the distribution of oxygen and other variables in the southeastern Pacific,” commented Lenna Ortiz, a physical oceanographer at CIEP. In this regard, she emphasized that such collaborations allow for addressing complex questions from an interdisciplinary perspective and with cutting-edge tools, highlighting the importance of international cooperation in the context of climate change. ANTICIPATING IMPACTS The experience not only advanced scientific analysis but also consolidated work networks and shared knowledge among institutions.
In this sense, the internship continues a sustained collaboration between CIEP and CEAZA, whose PATSER and CLAP projects…
Alexander Galán (UCM), Dr. Sophie Rabouille (LOMIC), Dr. Véronique Garçon (CNRS), and Dr.
Aurélien Paulmier (LEGOS). The CIEP researcher finally emphasized that the results of these investigations will contribute to improving projections regarding the evolution of low-oxygen zones in a global warming scenario, as well as understanding the interaction between bacterial processes and physical-biogeochemical dynamics, which is crucial for anticipating impacts on marine ecosystems and human activities that depend on the ocean, contributing to the design of adaptation strategies in the face of climate change.