Benthic stations were conducted during NBP9802 at the locations of the sediment trap moorings, as well as at stations indicated by large dots. Bio-optical moorings deployed in an array spanning the PF are indicated by small dots. The locations of the principal fronts (Orsi et al., 1995) are also displayed. The Southern Ocean is traditionally divided into concentric zones surrounding Antarctica. From north to south these are the Subantarctic Zone, lying between the Subtropical Front (STF) and the Subantarctic Front (SAF), the Polar Front Zone, located between the SAF and the Polar Front (PF), and the Antarctic Zone, encompassing all waters south of the PF (although some authors distinguish continental shelf waters as a separate zone; e.g., Nowlin and Klink, 1986; Patterson and Whitworth, 1990; Peterson and Strama, 1991; Orsi et al., 1995; Belkin and Gordon, 1996). The Seasonal Ice Zone (Tréguer and Jacques, 1992) overlaps the Antarctic Zone, and extends to ca. 62°S, while the Permanently Open-Ocean Zone, defined as the region between the PF and the northern limits of sea ice (Tréguer and Jacques, 1992) is virtually non-existent at 170°W. Cruise tracks and station locations for each AESOPS cruise can be accessed at: http://usjgofs.whoi.edu/aesops-cruises.html

Belkin, I. M., Gordon, A. L. 1996. Southern Ocean fronts from the Greenwich meridian to Tasmania. Journal of Geophysical Research 101, 3675-3696.

Nowlin, W. D., Jr., Klink, J. M. 1986. The physics of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Reviews of Geophysics 24, 469-491.

Orsi, A.H., Whitworth, T., Nowlin, W.D. 1995. On the meridional extent and fronts of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. Deep-Sea Research I 42, 641-673.

Patterson, S. L., Whitworth, T. 1990. Physical Oceanography. In: Glasby, G. P., (Editor), Antarctic Sector of the Pacific. Elsevier Oceanography Series, 51, Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp. 55-93.

Peterson, R. G., Strama, L. 1991. Upper-level circulation in the South Atlantic Ocean. Progress in Oceanography 26, 1-73.

Tréguer, P., Jacques, G. 1992. Dynamics of nutrients and phytoplankton, and fluxes of carbon, nitrogen and silicon in the Antarctic Ocean. Polar Biology 12, 149-162.