Summary: Upwelling systems are special places in the oceans where nutrient-enriched water is brought into the euphotic zone to fuel phytoplankton blooms that, via marine food-web interactions, create the world’s richest fish resources. This book introduces the reader to the interdisciplinary science of upwelling and provides a comprehensive overview of the world’s most productive marine ecosystems in the context of climate variability, climate change and human exploitation. This material presented is suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate study or just for anyone interested to learn about the creation of life in the oceans and how this is compromised by human activities.

Chapter 1. Preliminaries -- Chapter 2. The Functioning of Coastal Upwelling Systems -- Chapter 3. Large-Scale Setting, Natural Variability and Human Influences -- Chapter 4. The California Current Upwelling System -- Chapter 5 The Peru-Chile Coastal Upwelling System -- Chapter 6. The Canary/Iberia Current Upwelling System -- Chapter 7. The Benguela Current Upwelling System -- Chapter 8. Seasonal Wind-driven Coastal Upwelling Systems -- Chapter 9. Other Important Upwelling Systems -- Chapter 10. Comparison, Enigmas and Future Research.