Articles | Volume 13, issue 10
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-2889-2016
© Author(s) 2016. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-2889-2016
© Author(s) 2016. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article
| 
18 May 2016
Research article |
| 18 May 2016
N2 fixation in eddies of the eastern tropical South Pacific Ocean
Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research Kiel,
Düsternbrooker Weg 20, 24105 Kiel, Germany
Institute of Microbiology, Christian Albrechts University
of Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1–9, 24118 Kiel, Germany
Annie Bourbonnais
School for Marine Science and Technology, University of
Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, Massachusetts, USA
Julien Dekaezemacker
Department of Biogeochemistry, Max Planck Institute for
Marine Microbiology, Celsiusstraße 1, 28359 Bremen,
Germany
now at: MARUM, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen,
Germany
now at: Helmholtz Young Investigator Group SEAPUMP, Alfred Wegener
Institute for Polar and Marine Research, 27570 Bremerhaven,
Germany
Chawalit N. Charoenpong
Department of Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry, Woods
Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Massachusetts,
USA
Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts,
USA
Mark A. Altabet
School for Marine Science and Technology, University of
Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, Massachusetts, USA
Hermann W. Bange
Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research Kiel,
Düsternbrooker Weg 20, 24105 Kiel, Germany
Christian Albrechts University Kiel, Christian-Albrechts-Platz 4, 24118 Kiel,
Germany
Rena Czeschel
Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research Kiel,
Düsternbrooker Weg 20, 24105 Kiel, Germany
Chris Hoffmann
Institute of Microbiology, Christian Albrechts University
of Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1–9, 24118 Kiel, Germany
Ruth Schmitz
Institute of Microbiology, Christian Albrechts University
of Kiel, Am Botanischen Garten 1–9, 24118 Kiel, Germany
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Carolin R. Löscher, Hermann W. Bange, Ruth A. Schmitz, Cameron M. Callbeck, Anja Engel, Helena Hauss, Torsten Kanzow, Rainer Kiko, Gaute Lavik, Alexandra Loginova, Frank Melzner, Judith Meyer, Sven C. Neulinger, Markus Pahlow, Ulf Riebesell, Harald Schunck, Sören Thomsen, and Hannes Wagner
Biogeosciences, 13, 3585–3606, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-3585-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-3585-2016, 2016
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The ocean loses oxygen due to climate change. Addressing this issue in tropical ocean regions (off Peru and Mauritania), we aimed to understand the effects of oxygen depletion on various aspects of marine biogeochemistry, including primary production and export production, the nitrogen cycle, greenhouse gas production, organic matter fluxes and remineralization, and the role of zooplankton and viruses.
Helena Hauss, Svenja Christiansen, Florian Schütte, Rainer Kiko, Miryam Edvam Lima, Elizandro Rodrigues, Johannes Karstensen, Carolin R. Löscher, Arne Körtzinger, and Björn Fiedler
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Ulrike Lomnitz, Stefan Sommer, Andrew W. Dale, Carolin R. Löscher, Anna Noffke, Klaus Wallmann, and Christian Hensen
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Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Annette Kock, Carolin R. Löscher, Ruth A. Schmitz, Lothar Stramma, and Hermann W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 13, 1105–1118, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1105-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1105-2016, 2016
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A. Kock, D. L. Arévalo-Martínez, C. R. Löscher, and H. W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 13, 827–840, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-827-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-827-2016, 2016
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We measured the nitrous oxide (N2O) distribution in the water column in the oxygen minimum zone off Peru, an area with extremely high N2O emissions. Our data show very variable and often very high N2O concentrations in the water column at the coast, which lead to high N2O emissions when these waters are brought to the surface. The very high N2O production off Peru may be caused by high nutrient turnover rates together with rapid changes in the oxygen concentrations.
J. Meyer, C. R. Löscher, S. C. Neulinger, A. F. Reichel, A. Loginova, C. Borchard, R. A. Schmitz, H. Hauss, R. Kiko, and U. Riebesell
Biogeosciences, 13, 781–794, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-781-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-781-2016, 2016
C. R. Löscher, M. A. Fischer, S. C. Neulinger, B. Fiedler, M. Philippi, F. Schütte, A. Singh, H. Hauss, J. Karstensen, A. Körtzinger, S. Künzel, and R. A. Schmitz
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V. J. Bertics, C. R. Löscher, I. Salonen, A. W. Dale, J. Gier, R. A. Schmitz, and T. Treude
Biogeosciences, 10, 1243–1258, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-1243-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-1243-2013, 2013
Pratirupa Bardhan, Claudia Frey, Gregor Rehder, and Hermann W. Bange
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2518, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2518, 2025
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Biogeosciences (BG).
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Gesa Schulz, Kirstin Dähnke, Tina Sanders, Jan Penopp, Hermann W. Bange, Rena Czeschel, and Birgit Gaye
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1660, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1660, 2025
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Oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) are low-oxygen ocean areas that deplete nitrogen, a key marine nutrient. Understanding nitrogen cycling in OMZs is crucial for the global nitrogen cycle. This study examined nitrogen cycling in the OMZ of the Bay of Bengal and East Equatorial Indian Ocean, revealing limited mixing between both regions. Surface phytoplankton consumes nitrate, while deeper nitrification recycles nitrogen. In the BoB’s OMZ (100–300 m), nitrogen loss likely occurs via anammox.
Anna Pedersen, Carolin R. Löscher, and Steffen M. Olsen
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1218, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-1218, 2025
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The North Atlantic plays a crucial role in absorbing atmospheric CO2, but its air-sea CO2 flux varies across time and space. Using historical climate model simulations, we investigate how physical and oceanic processes drive the variability. Our results show that sea ice, temperature, salinity, wind stress, and ocean circulation shape CO2 exchange, with short-term fluctuations playing a dominant role. Understanding these complex interactions is key to predicting future ocean carbon uptake.
Johnathan Daniel Maxey, Neil D. Hartstein, Hermann W. Bange, and Moritz Müller
Biogeosciences, 21, 5613–5637, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-5613-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-5613-2024, 2024
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The distribution of N2O in fjord-like estuaries is poorly described in the Southern Hemisphere. Our study describes N2O distribution and its drivers in one such system in Macquarie Harbour, Tasmania. Water samples were collected seasonally in 2022 and 2023. Results show the system removes atmospheric N2O when river flow is high, whereas the system emits N2O when the river flow is low. N2O generated in basins is intercepted by the surface water and exported to the ocean during high river flow.
Isabell Schlangen, Elizabeth Leon-Palmero, Annabell Moser, Peihang Xu, Erik Laursen, and Carolin Regina Löscher
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3680, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3680, 2024
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We explored nitrogen fixation in the Arctic Ocean, revealing its key role in supporting coastal productivity, especially near melting glaciers. By combining molecular data, rate measurements, and environmental analysis, we identified dominant microbes like symbiotic unicellular cyanobacteria and linked high nitrogen fixation to glacial melt. Our findings suggest that climate-driven changes may expand niches for these microbes, reshaping nitrogen cycles and Arctic productivity in the future.
Sebastian I. Cantarero, Edgart Flores, Harry Allbrook, Paulina Aguayo, Cristian A. Vargas, John E. Tamanaha, J. Bentley C. Scholz, Lennart T. Bach, Carolin R. Löscher, Ulf Riebesell, Balaji Rajagopalan, Nadia Dildar, and Julio Sepúlveda
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Our study explores lipid remodeling in response to environmental stress, specifically how cell membrane chemistry changes. We focus on intact polar lipids in a phytoplankton community exposed to diverse stressors in a mesocosm experiment. The observed remodeling indicates acyl chain recycling for energy storage in intact polar lipids during stress, reallocating resources based on varying growth conditions. This understanding is essential to grasp the system's impact on cellular pools.
Riel Carlo O. Ingeniero, Gesa Schulz, and Hermann W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 21, 3425–3440, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3425-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3425-2024, 2024
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Our research is the first to measure dissolved NO concentrations in temperate estuarine waters, providing insights into its distribution under varying conditions and enhancing our understanding of its production processes. Dissolved NO was supersaturated in the Elbe Estuary, indicating that it is a source of atmospheric NO. The observed distribution of dissolved NO most likely resulted from nitrification.
Jakob Rønning, Zarah J. Kofoed, Mats Jacobsen, and Carolin R. Löscher
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2884, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2884, 2024
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In our study, we assessed the impact of olivine on marine primary producers of ocean-based solutions. The experiments revealed no negative effects on carbon fixation rates. Additions of the alkaline minerals did not establish growth inhibition; instead, they showed slight growth increases with species-specific responses. Ni exposure from olivine did not inhibit growth. However, limitations include the absence of responses in natural settings.
Hanqin Tian, Naiqing Pan, Rona L. Thompson, Josep G. Canadell, Parvadha Suntharalingam, Pierre Regnier, Eric A. Davidson, Michael Prather, Philippe Ciais, Marilena Muntean, Shufen Pan, Wilfried Winiwarter, Sönke Zaehle, Feng Zhou, Robert B. Jackson, Hermann W. Bange, Sarah Berthet, Zihao Bian, Daniele Bianchi, Alexander F. Bouwman, Erik T. Buitenhuis, Geoffrey Dutton, Minpeng Hu, Akihiko Ito, Atul K. Jain, Aurich Jeltsch-Thömmes, Fortunat Joos, Sian Kou-Giesbrecht, Paul B. Krummel, Xin Lan, Angela Landolfi, Ronny Lauerwald, Ya Li, Chaoqun Lu, Taylor Maavara, Manfredi Manizza, Dylan B. Millet, Jens Mühle, Prabir K. Patra, Glen P. Peters, Xiaoyu Qin, Peter Raymond, Laure Resplandy, Judith A. Rosentreter, Hao Shi, Qing Sun, Daniele Tonina, Francesco N. Tubiello, Guido R. van der Werf, Nicolas Vuichard, Junjie Wang, Kelley C. Wells, Luke M. Western, Chris Wilson, Jia Yang, Yuanzhi Yao, Yongfa You, and Qing Zhu
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 16, 2543–2604, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-16-2543-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-16-2543-2024, 2024
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Atmospheric concentrations of nitrous oxide (N2O), a greenhouse gas 273 times more potent than carbon dioxide, have increased by 25 % since the preindustrial period, with the highest observed growth rate in 2020 and 2021. This rapid growth rate has primarily been due to a 40 % increase in anthropogenic emissions since 1980. Observed atmospheric N2O concentrations in recent years have exceeded the worst-case climate scenario, underscoring the importance of reducing anthropogenic N2O emissions.
Matthew D. Eisaman, Sonja Geilert, Phil Renforth, Laura Bastianini, James Campbell, Andrew W. Dale, Spyros Foteinis, Patricia Grasse, Olivia Hawrot, Carolin R. Löscher, Greg H. Rau, and Jakob Rønning
State Planet, 2-oae2023, 3, https://doi.org/10.5194/sp-2-oae2023-3-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/sp-2-oae2023-3-2023, 2023
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Ocean-alkalinity-enhancement technologies refer to various methods and approaches aimed at increasing the alkalinity of seawater. This chapter explores technologies for increasing ocean alkalinity, including electrochemical-based approaches, ocean liming, accelerated weathering of limestone, hydrated carbonate addition, and coastal enhanced weathering, and suggests best practices in research and development.
Zhibo Shao, Yangchun Xu, Hua Wang, Weicheng Luo, Lice Wang, Yuhong Huang, Nona Sheila R. Agawin, Ayaz Ahmed, Mar Benavides, Mikkel Bentzon-Tilia, Ilana Berman-Frank, Hugo Berthelot, Isabelle C. Biegala, Mariana B. Bif, Antonio Bode, Sophie Bonnet, Deborah A. Bronk, Mark V. Brown, Lisa Campbell, Douglas G. Capone, Edward J. Carpenter, Nicolas Cassar, Bonnie X. Chang, Dreux Chappell, Yuh-ling Lee Chen, Matthew J. Church, Francisco M. Cornejo-Castillo, Amália Maria Sacilotto Detoni, Scott C. Doney, Cecile Dupouy, Marta Estrada, Camila Fernandez, Bieito Fernández-Castro, Debany Fonseca-Batista, Rachel A. Foster, Ken Furuya, Nicole Garcia, Kanji Goto, Jesús Gago, Mary R. Gradoville, M. Robert Hamersley, Britt A. Henke, Cora Hörstmann, Amal Jayakumar, Zhibing Jiang, Shuh-Ji Kao, David M. Karl, Leila R. Kittu, Angela N. Knapp, Sanjeev Kumar, Julie LaRoche, Hongbin Liu, Jiaxing Liu, Caroline Lory, Carolin R. Löscher, Emilio Marañón, Lauren F. Messer, Matthew M. Mills, Wiebke Mohr, Pia H. Moisander, Claire Mahaffey, Robert Moore, Beatriz Mouriño-Carballido, Margaret R. Mulholland, Shin-ichiro Nakaoka, Joseph A. Needoba, Eric J. Raes, Eyal Rahav, Teodoro Ramírez-Cárdenas, Christian Furbo Reeder, Lasse Riemann, Virginie Riou, Julie C. Robidart, Vedula V. S. S. Sarma, Takuya Sato, Himanshu Saxena, Corday Selden, Justin R. Seymour, Dalin Shi, Takuhei Shiozaki, Arvind Singh, Rachel E. Sipler, Jun Sun, Koji Suzuki, Kazutaka Takahashi, Yehui Tan, Weiyi Tang, Jean-Éric Tremblay, Kendra Turk-Kubo, Zuozhu Wen, Angelicque E. White, Samuel T. Wilson, Takashi Yoshida, Jonathan P. Zehr, Run Zhang, Yao Zhang, and Ya-Wei Luo
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 3673–3709, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-3673-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-3673-2023, 2023
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N2 fixation by marine diazotrophs is an important bioavailable N source to the global ocean. This updated global oceanic diazotroph database increases the number of in situ measurements of N2 fixation rates, diazotrophic cell abundances, and nifH gene copy abundances by 184 %, 86 %, and 809 %, respectively. Using the updated database, the global marine N2 fixation rate is estimated at 223 ± 30 Tg N yr−1, which triplicates that using the original database.
Gesa Schulz, Tina Sanders, Yoana G. Voynova, Hermann W. Bange, and Kirstin Dähnke
Biogeosciences, 20, 3229–3247, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3229-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3229-2023, 2023
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Nitrous oxide (N2O) is an important greenhouse gas. However, N2O emissions from estuaries underlie significant uncertainties due to limited data availability and high spatiotemporal variability. We found the Elbe Estuary (Germany) to be a year-round source of N2O, with the highest emissions in winter along with high nitrogen loads. However, in spring and summer, N2O emissions did not decrease alongside lower nitrogen loads because organic matter fueled in situ N2O production along the estuary.
Guanlin Li, Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Riel Carlo O. Ingeniero, and Hermann W. Bange
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-771, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-771, 2023
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Dissolved carbon monoxide (CO) surface concentrations were first measured at 14 stations in the Ria Formosa Lagoon system in May 2021. Ria Formosa was a source of atmospheric CO. Microbial consumption accounted for 83 % of the CO production. The results of a 48-hour irradiation experiment with aquaculture effluent water indicated that aquaculture facilities in the Ria Formosa Lagoon seem to be a negligible source of atmospheric CO.
Pierre L'Hégaret, Florian Schütte, Sabrina Speich, Gilles Reverdin, Dariusz B. Baranowski, Rena Czeschel, Tim Fischer, Gregory R. Foltz, Karen J. Heywood, Gerd Krahmann, Rémi Laxenaire, Caroline Le Bihan, Philippe Le Bot, Stéphane Leizour, Callum Rollo, Michael Schlundt, Elizabeth Siddle, Corentin Subirade, Dongxiao Zhang, and Johannes Karstensen
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 1801–1830, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1801-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1801-2023, 2023
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In early 2020, the EUREC4A-OA/ATOMIC experiment took place in the northwestern Tropical Atlantic Ocean, a dynamical region where different water masses interact. Four oceanographic vessels and a fleet of autonomous devices were deployed to study the processes at play and sample the upper ocean, each with its own observing capability. The article first describes the data calibration and validation and second their cross-validation, using a hierarchy of instruments and estimating the uncertainty.
Hanna I. Campen, Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, and Hermann W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 20, 1371–1379, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1371-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1371-2023, 2023
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Carbon monoxide (CO) is a climate-relevant trace gas emitted from the ocean. However, oceanic CO cycling is understudied. Results from incubation experiments conducted in the Fram Strait (Arctic Ocean) indicated that (i) pH did not affect CO cycling and (ii) enhanced CO production and consumption were positively correlated with coloured dissolved organic matter and nitrate concentrations. This suggests microbial CO uptake to be the driving factor for CO cycling in the Arctic Ocean.
Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Amir Haroon, Hermann W. Bange, Ercan Erkul, Marion Jegen, Nils Moosdorf, Jens Schneider von Deimling, Christian Berndt, Michael Ernst Böttcher, Jasper Hoffmann, Volker Liebetrau, Ulf Mallast, Gudrun Massmann, Aaron Micallef, Holly A. Michael, Hendrik Paasche, Wolfgang Rabbel, Isaac Santos, Jan Scholten, Katrin Schwalenberg, Beata Szymczycha, Ariel T. Thomas, Joonas J. Virtasalo, Hannelore Waska, and Bradley A. Weymer
Biogeosciences, 20, 647–662, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-647-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-647-2023, 2023
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Groundwater flows at the land–ocean transition and the extent of freshened groundwater below the seafloor are increasingly relevant in marine sciences, both because they are a highly uncertain term of biogeochemical budgets and due to the emerging interest in the latter as a resource. Here, we discuss our perspectives on future research directions to better understand land–ocean connectivity through groundwater and its potential responses to natural and human-induced environmental changes.
Sonja Gindorf, Hermann W. Bange, Dennis Booge, and Annette Kock
Biogeosciences, 19, 4993–5006, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-4993-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-4993-2022, 2022
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Methane is a climate-relevant greenhouse gas which is emitted to the atmosphere from coastal areas such as the Baltic Sea. We measured the methane concentration in the water column of the western Kiel Bight. Methane concentrations were higher in September than in June. We found no relationship between the 2018 European heatwave and methane concentrations. Our results show that the methane distribution in the water column is strongly affected by temporal and spatial variabilities.
Christian Furbo Reeder, Ina Stoltenberg, Jamileh Javidpour, and Carolin Regina Löscher
Ocean Sci., 18, 401–417, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-18-401-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-18-401-2022, 2022
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The Baltic Sea is predicted to freshen in the future. To explore the effect of decreasing salinity on N2 fixers, we followed the natural salinity gradient in the Baltic Sea from the Kiel Fjord to the Gotland Basin and identified an N2 fixer community dominated by Nodularia and UCYN-A. A salinity threshold was identified at a salinity of 10, with Nodularia dominating at low and UCYN-A dominating at higher salinity, suggesting a future expansion of Nodularia N2 fixers and a retraction of UCYN-A.
Yanan Zhao, Dennis Booge, Christa A. Marandino, Cathleen Schlundt, Astrid Bracher, Elliot L. Atlas, Jonathan Williams, and Hermann W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 19, 701–714, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-701-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-701-2022, 2022
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We present here, for the first time, simultaneously measured dimethylsulfide (DMS) seawater concentrations and DMS atmospheric mole fractions from the Peruvian upwelling region during two cruises in December 2012 and October 2015. Our results indicate low oceanic DMS concentrations and atmospheric DMS molar fractions in surface waters and the atmosphere, respectively. In addition, the Peruvian upwelling region was identified as an insignificant source of DMS emissions during both periods.
Wangwang Ye, Hermann W. Bange, Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Hailun He, Yuhong Li, Jianwen Wen, Jiexia Zhang, Jian Liu, Man Wu, and Liyang Zhan
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-334, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-334, 2022
Manuscript not accepted for further review
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CH4 is the second important greenhouse gas after CO2. We show that CH4 consumption and sea-ice melting influence the CH4 distribution in the Ross Sea (Southern Ocean), causing undersaturation and net uptake of CH4 during summertime. This study confirms the capability of surface water in the high-latitude Southern Ocean regions to take up atmospheric CH4 which, in turn, will help to improve predictions of how CH4 release/uptake from the ocean will develop when sea-ice retreats in the future.
Carolin R. Löscher
Biogeosciences, 18, 4953–4963, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4953-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4953-2021, 2021
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The Bay of Bengal (BoB) is classically seen as an ocean region with low primary production, which has been predicted to decrease even further. Here, the importance of such a trend is used to explore what could happen to the BoB's low-oxygen core waters if primary production decreases. Lower biological production leads to less oxygen loss in deeper waters by respiration; thus it could be that oxygen will not further decrease and the BoB will not become anoxic, different to other low-oxygen areas.
Kai G. Schulz, Eric P. Achterberg, Javier Arístegui, Lennart T. Bach, Isabel Baños, Tim Boxhammer, Dirk Erler, Maricarmen Igarza, Verena Kalter, Andrea Ludwig, Carolin Löscher, Jana Meyer, Judith Meyer, Fabrizio Minutolo, Elisabeth von der Esch, Bess B. Ward, and Ulf Riebesell
Biogeosciences, 18, 4305–4320, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4305-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4305-2021, 2021
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Upwelling of nutrient-rich deep waters to the surface make eastern boundary upwelling systems hot spots of marine productivity. This leads to subsurface oxygen depletion and the transformation of bioavailable nitrogen into inert N2. Here we quantify nitrogen loss processes following a simulated deep water upwelling. Denitrification was the dominant process, and budget calculations suggest that a significant portion of nitrogen that could be exported to depth is already lost in the surface ocean.
Siqi Wu, Moge Du, Xianhui Sean Wan, Corday Selden, Mar Benavides, Sophie Bonnet, Robert Hamersley, Carolin R. Löscher, Margaret R. Mulholland, Xiuli Yan, and Shuh-Ji Kao
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-104, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2021-104, 2021
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Nitrogen (N2) fixation is one of the most important nutrient sources to the ocean. Here, we report N2 fixation in the deep, dark ocean in the South China Sea via a highly sensitive new method and elaborate controls, showing the overlooked importance of N2 fixation in the deep ocean. By global data compilation, we also provide an easy measured basic parameter to estimate deep N2 fixation. Our study may help to expand the area limit of N2 fixation studies and better constrain global N2 fixation.
Gerd Krahmann, Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Andrew W. Dale, Marcus Dengler, Anja Engel, Nicolaas Glock, Patricia Grasse, Johannes Hahn, Helena Hauss, Mark Hopwood, Rainer Kiko, Alexandra Loginova, Carolin R. Löscher, Marie Maßmig, Alexandra-Sophie Roy, Renato Salvatteci, Stefan Sommer, Toste Tanhua, and Hela Mehrtens
Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2020-308, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2020-308, 2021
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The project "Climate-Biogeochemistry Interactions in the Tropical Ocean" (SFB 754) was a multidisciplinary research project active from 2008 to 2019 aimed at a better understanding of the coupling between the tropical climate and ocean circulation and the ocean's oxygen and nutrient balance. On 34 research cruises, mainly in the Southeast Tropical Pacific and the Northeast Tropical Atlantic, 1071 physical, chemical and biological data sets were collected.
Yanan Zhao, Cathleen Schlundt, Dennis Booge, and Hermann W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 18, 2161–2179, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2161-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-2161-2021, 2021
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We present a unique and comprehensive time-series study of biogenic sulfur compounds in the southwestern Baltic Sea, from 2009 to 2018. Dimethyl sulfide is one of the key players regulating global climate change, as well as dimethylsulfoniopropionate and dimethyl sulfoxide. Their decadal trends did not follow increasing temperature but followed some algae group abundances at the Boknis Eck Time Series Station.
Henrike Schmidt, Rena Czeschel, and Martin Visbeck
Ocean Sci., 16, 1459–1474, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-16-1459-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-16-1459-2020, 2020
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Our investigations give detailed insight on the seasonally changing current system at intermediate depth in the Arabian Sea that is influenced by the monsoon. The changing currents influence the oxygen transport in the interior ocean and thus allow us to draw conclusions on the maintenance and seasonal variability of the upper part of the oxygen minimum zone in the Arabian Sea.
Samuel T. Wilson, Alia N. Al-Haj, Annie Bourbonnais, Claudia Frey, Robinson W. Fulweiler, John D. Kessler, Hannah K. Marchant, Jana Milucka, Nicholas E. Ray, Parvadha Suntharalingam, Brett F. Thornton, Robert C. Upstill-Goddard, Thomas S. Weber, Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Hermann W. Bange, Heather M. Benway, Daniele Bianchi, Alberto V. Borges, Bonnie X. Chang, Patrick M. Crill, Daniela A. del Valle, Laura Farías, Samantha B. Joye, Annette Kock, Jabrane Labidi, Cara C. Manning, John W. Pohlman, Gregor Rehder, Katy J. Sparrow, Philippe D. Tortell, Tina Treude, David L. Valentine, Bess B. Ward, Simon Yang, and Leonid N. Yurganov
Biogeosciences, 17, 5809–5828, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-5809-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-5809-2020, 2020
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The oceans are a net source of the major greenhouse gases; however there has been little coordination of oceanic methane and nitrous oxide measurements. The scientific community has recently embarked on a series of capacity-building exercises to improve the interoperability of dissolved methane and nitrous oxide measurements. This paper derives from a workshop which discussed the challenges and opportunities for oceanic methane and nitrous oxide research in the near future.
Lennart Thomas Bach, Allanah Joy Paul, Tim Boxhammer, Elisabeth von der Esch, Michelle Graco, Kai Georg Schulz, Eric Achterberg, Paulina Aguayo, Javier Arístegui, Patrizia Ayón, Isabel Baños, Avy Bernales, Anne Sophie Boegeholz, Francisco Chavez, Gabriela Chavez, Shao-Min Chen, Kristin Doering, Alba Filella, Martin Fischer, Patricia Grasse, Mathias Haunost, Jan Hennke, Nauzet Hernández-Hernández, Mark Hopwood, Maricarmen Igarza, Verena Kalter, Leila Kittu, Peter Kohnert, Jesus Ledesma, Christian Lieberum, Silke Lischka, Carolin Löscher, Andrea Ludwig, Ursula Mendoza, Jana Meyer, Judith Meyer, Fabrizio Minutolo, Joaquin Ortiz Cortes, Jonna Piiparinen, Claudia Sforna, Kristian Spilling, Sonia Sanchez, Carsten Spisla, Michael Sswat, Mabel Zavala Moreira, and Ulf Riebesell
Biogeosciences, 17, 4831–4852, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-4831-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-4831-2020, 2020
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The eastern boundary upwelling system off Peru is among Earth's most productive ocean ecosystems, but the factors that control its functioning are poorly constrained. Here we used mesocosms, moored ~ 6 km offshore Peru, to investigate how processes in plankton communities drive key biogeochemical processes. We show that nutrient and light co-limitation keep productivity and export at a remarkably constant level while stoichiometry changes strongly with shifts in plankton community structure.
Xiao Ma, Mingshuang Sun, Sinikka T. Lennartz, and Hermann W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 17, 3427–3438, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-3427-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-3427-2020, 2020
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Monthly measurements of dissolved methane (CH4), a potent greenhouse gas, were conducted at Boknis Eck (BE), a time-series station in the southwestern Baltic Sea, from June 2006. In general CH4 concentrations increased with depth. High concentrations in the upper layer were linked to saline water inflow. Eckernförde Bay emitted CH4 to the atmosphere throughout the monitoring period. No significant trend was detected in CH4 concentrations or emissions during 2006–2017.
Claudia Frey, Hermann W. Bange, Eric P. Achterberg, Amal Jayakumar, Carolin R. Löscher, Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Elizabeth León-Palmero, Mingshuang Sun, Xin Sun, Ruifang C. Xie, Sergey Oleynik, and Bess B. Ward
Biogeosciences, 17, 2263–2287, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-2263-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-2263-2020, 2020
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The production of N2O via nitrification and denitrification associated with low-O2 waters is a major source of oceanic N2O. We investigated the regulation and dynamics of these processes with respect to O2 and organic matter inputs. The transcription of the key nitrification gene amoA rapidly responded to changes in O2 and strongly correlated with N2O production rates. N2O production by denitrification was clearly stimulated by organic carbon, implying that its supply controls N2O production.
Carolin R. Löscher, Wiebke Mohr, Hermann W. Bange, and Donald E. Canfield
Biogeosciences, 17, 851–864, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-851-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-851-2020, 2020
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Oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) are ocean areas severely depleted in oxygen as a result of physical, chemical, and biological processes. Biologically, organic material is produced in the sea surface and exported to deeper waters, where it respires. In the Bay of Bengal (BoB), an OMZ is present, but there are traces of oxygen left. Our study now suggests that this is because one key process, nitrogen fixation, is absent in the BoB, thus preventing primary production and consecutive respiration.
Ye Tian, Gui-Peng Yang, Chun-Ying Liu, Pei-Feng Li, Hong-Tao Chen, and Hermann W. Bange
Ocean Sci., 16, 135–148, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-16-135-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-16-135-2020, 2020
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Nitric oxide (NO) could be produced by nitrite photolysis; the rates from dissolved nitrite in artificial seawater showed increasing trends with decreasing pH, increasing temperatures, and increasing salinity. However, NO photoproduction from the natural seawater samples did not show correlations with pH, water temperature, salinity, or dissolved nitrite concentrations in the western tropical North Pacific Ocean (WNTP). And there were other NO loss processes in the surface layer of WNTP.
Thomas Holding, Ian G. Ashton, Jamie D. Shutler, Peter E. Land, Philip D. Nightingale, Andrew P. Rees, Ian Brown, Jean-Francois Piolle, Annette Kock, Hermann W. Bange, David K. Woolf, Lonneke Goddijn-Murphy, Ryan Pereira, Frederic Paul, Fanny Girard-Ardhuin, Bertrand Chapron, Gregor Rehder, Fabrice Ardhuin, and Craig J. Donlon
Ocean Sci., 15, 1707–1728, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-15-1707-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-15-1707-2019, 2019
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FluxEngine is an open-source software toolbox designed to allow for the easy and accurate calculation of air–sea gas fluxes. This article describes new functionality and capabilities, which include the ability to calculate fluxes for nitrous oxide and methane, optimisation for running FluxEngine on a stand-alone desktop computer, and extensive new features to support the in situ measurement community. Four research case studies are used to demonstrate these new features.
Ye Tian, Chao Xue, Chun-Ying Liu, Gui-Peng Yang, Pei-Feng Li, Wei-Hua Feng, and Hermann W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 16, 4485–4496, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4485-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4485-2019, 2019
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Nitric oxide (NO) seems to be widespread, with different functions in the marine ecosystem, but we know little about it. Concentrations of NO were in a range from below the limit of detection to 616 pmol L−1 at the surface and 482 pmol L−1 at the bottom of the Bohai and Yellow seas. The study region was a source of atmospheric NO. Net NO sea-to-air fluxes were much lower than NO photoproduction rates, implying that the NO produced in the mixed layer was rapidly consumed before entering the air.
Hermann W. Bange, Chun Hock Sim, Daniel Bastian, Jennifer Kallert, Annette Kock, Aazani Mujahid, and Moritz Müller
Biogeosciences, 16, 4321–4335, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4321-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4321-2019, 2019
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Nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) are atmospheric trace gases which play important roles in the climate and atmospheric chemistry of the Earth. However, little is known about their emissions from rivers and estuaries. To this end, concentrations of N2O and CH4 were measured during a seasonal study in six rivers and estuaries in northwestern Borneo. The concentrations of both gases were mainly driven by rainfall. The rivers and estuaries were an overall net source of atmospheric N2O and CH4.
Xiao Ma, Sinikka T. Lennartz, and Hermann W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 16, 4097–4111, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4097-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4097-2019, 2019
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Monthly measurements of nitrous oxide (N2O), a potent greenhouse gas and ozone depletion agent, were conducted at Boknis Eck (BE), a time series station in the southwestern Baltic Sea, since July 2005. Low N2O concentrations were observed in autumn and high in winter and early spring. Dissolved nutrients and oxygen played important roles in N2O distribution. Although we did not observe a significant N2O trend during 2005–2017, a decrease in N2O concentration and emission seems likely in future.
Eric J. Morgan, Jost V. Lavric, Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Hermann W. Bange, Tobias Steinhoff, Thomas Seifert, and Martin Heimann
Biogeosciences, 16, 4065–4084, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4065-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-4065-2019, 2019
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Taking a 2-year atmospheric record of atmospheric oxygen and the greenhouse gases N2O, CO2, and CH4, made at a coastal site in the Namib Desert, we estimated the fluxes of these gases from upwelling events in the northern Benguela Current region. We compared these results with flux measurements made on a research vessel in the study area at the same time and found that the two approaches agreed well. The study region was a source of N2O, CO2, and CH4 to the atmosphere during upwelling events.
Tim Fischer, Annette Kock, Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Marcus Dengler, Peter Brandt, and Hermann W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 16, 2307–2328, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-2307-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-2307-2019, 2019
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We investigated air–sea gas exchange in oceanic upwelling regions for the case of nitrous oxide off Peru. In this region, routine concentration measurements from ships at 5 m or 10 m depth prove to overestimate surface (bulk) concentration. Thus, standard estimates of gas exchange will show systematic error. This is due to very shallow stratified layers that inhibit exchange between surface water and waters below and can exist for several days. Maximum bias occurs in moderate wind conditions.
Qixing Ji, Mark A. Altabet, Hermann W. Bange, Michelle I. Graco, Xiao Ma, Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, and Damian S. Grundle
Biogeosciences, 16, 2079–2093, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-2079-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-2079-2019, 2019
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A strong El Niño event occurred in the Peruvian coastal region in 2015–2016, during which higher sea surface temperatures co-occurred with significantly lower sea-to-air fluxes of nitrous oxide, an important greenhouse gas and ozone depletion agent. Stratified water column during El Niño retained a larger amount of nitrous oxide that was produced via multiple microbial pathways; and intense nitrous oxide effluxes could occur when normal upwelling is resumed after El Niño.
Henrike Schmidt, Rena Czeschel, and Martin Visbeck
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2019-168, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2019-168, 2019
Manuscript not accepted for further review
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Our investigations give a detailed insight on the changing current system at intermediate depth in the Arabian Sea and allow to draw conclusions on ventilation pathways of the oxygen minimum zone and its seasonal variability. In response to the monsoon system the boundary currents change direction and feature a regionally varying ventilation pattern.
Catherine A. Pfister and Mark A. Altabet
Biogeosciences, 16, 193–206, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-193-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-16-193-2019, 2019
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Microbial assemblages on host plants and animals are an increasingly recognized biological phenomenon. We present evidence that microbes in association with mussels and seaweeds are contributing greatly to nitrogen cycling in coastal marine areas, often many times that of the microbes that are simply free-living in seawater. The addition of dissolved organic carbon increased nutrient uptake by microbes, suggesting that coastal species enhance microbial metabolism through resource provisioning.
Samuel T. Wilson, Hermann W. Bange, Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Jonathan Barnes, Alberto V. Borges, Ian Brown, John L. Bullister, Macarena Burgos, David W. Capelle, Michael Casso, Mercedes de la Paz, Laura Farías, Lindsay Fenwick, Sara Ferrón, Gerardo Garcia, Michael Glockzin, David M. Karl, Annette Kock, Sarah Laperriere, Cliff S. Law, Cara C. Manning, Andrew Marriner, Jukka-Pekka Myllykangas, John W. Pohlman, Andrew P. Rees, Alyson E. Santoro, Philippe D. Tortell, Robert C. Upstill-Goddard, David P. Wisegarver, Gui-Ling Zhang, and Gregor Rehder
Biogeosciences, 15, 5891–5907, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-5891-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-5891-2018, 2018
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To determine the variability between independent measurements of dissolved methane and nitrous oxide, seawater samples were analyzed by multiple laboratories. The results revealed the influences of the different parts of the analytical process, from the initial sample collection to the calculation of the final concentrations. Recommendations are made to improve dissolved methane and nitrous oxide measurements to help preclude future analytical discrepancies between laboratories.
Rena Czeschel, Florian Schütte, Robert A. Weller, and Lothar Stramma
Ocean Sci., 14, 731–750, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-14-731-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-14-731-2018, 2018
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The mean circulation on the poleward side of the oxygen minimum zone is overlain by eddy activity playing an important role in the distribution of water masses and oxygen within the OMZ. The activity of different types of eddies was investigated during their westward propagation from the formation area off Peru/Chile into the open ocean. The focus was on the development of eddies, seasonal conditions during their formation, and the change of water mass properties transported within the eddies.
Johanna Maltby, Lea Steinle, Carolin R. Löscher, Hermann W. Bange, Martin A. Fischer, Mark Schmidt, and Tina Treude
Biogeosciences, 15, 137–157, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-137-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-15-137-2018, 2018
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The activity and environmental controls of methanogenesis (MG) within the sulfate-reducing zone (0–30 cm below the seafloor) were investigated in organic-rich sediments of the seasonally hypoxic Eckernförde Bay, SW Baltic Sea. MG activity was mostly linked to non-competitive substrates. The major controls identified were organic matter availability, C / N, temperature, and O2 in the water column, revealing higher rates in warm, stratified, hypoxic seasons compared to colder, oxygenated seasons.
Chun-Ying Liu, Wei-Hua Feng, Ye Tian, Gui-Peng Yang, Pei-Feng Li, and Hermann W. Bange
Ocean Sci., 13, 623–632, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-13-623-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-13-623-2017, 2017
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We developed a new method for the determination of dissolved nitric oxide (NO) in discrete seawater samples based on the combination of a purge-and-trap setup and a fluorometric detection of NO. With this method we have a reliable and comparably easy to use method to measure oceanic NO surface concentrations, which can be used to decipher both its temporal and spatial distributions as well as its biogeochemical pathways in the oceans.
Johannes Karstensen, Florian Schütte, Alice Pietri, Gerd Krahmann, Björn Fiedler, Damian Grundle, Helena Hauss, Arne Körtzinger, Carolin R. Löscher, Pierre Testor, Nuno Vieira, and Martin Visbeck
Biogeosciences, 14, 2167–2181, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-14-2167-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-14-2167-2017, 2017
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High-resolution observational data from underwater gliders and ships are used to investigate drivers and pathways of nutrient upwelling in high-productive whirling ecosystems (eddies). The data suggest that the upwelling is created by the interaction of wind-induced internal waves with the local rotation of the eddy. Because of differences in nutrient and oxygen pathways, a low-oxygen core is established at shallow depth in the high-productive eddies.
Lea Steinle, Johanna Maltby, Tina Treude, Annette Kock, Hermann W. Bange, Nadine Engbersen, Jakob Zopfi, Moritz F. Lehmann, and Helge Niemann
Biogeosciences, 14, 1631–1645, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-14-1631-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-14-1631-2017, 2017
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Large amounts of methane are produced in anoxic, coastal sediments, from which it can seep into the overlying water column. Aerobic oxidation of methane (MOx) mediated by methanotrophic bacteria is an important sink for methane before its evasion to the atmosphere. In a 2-year seasonal study, we investigated the spatio-temporal variability of MOx in a seasonally hypoxic coastal inlet using radiotracer-based methods. In experiments, we assessed the effect of variable oxygen concentrations on MOx.
Björn Fiedler, Damian S. Grundle, Florian Schütte, Johannes Karstensen, Carolin R. Löscher, Helena Hauss, Hannes Wagner, Alexandra Loginova, Rainer Kiko, Péricles Silva, Toste Tanhua, and Arne Körtzinger
Biogeosciences, 13, 5633–5647, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-5633-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-5633-2016, 2016
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Oxygen-depleted mesoscale features in the open eastern tropical North Atlantic, which are formed in the Mauritanian upwelling region, were discovered recently. This study examines biogeochemical structure and magnitudes of related processes within these isolated water masses. We found very low oxygen concentrations and strongly enhanced acidity at near-surface depth. Oxygen utilization and downward carbon export were found to exceed known values for this ocean region.
Jessica Gier, Stefan Sommer, Carolin R. Löscher, Andrew W. Dale, Ruth A. Schmitz, and Tina Treude
Biogeosciences, 13, 4065–4080, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-4065-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-4065-2016, 2016
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Benthic nitrogen fixation and sulfate reduction were investigated in the Peruvian oxygen minimum zone. The data suggest a coupling of both activities to a large extent, but that also sulfide and organic matter availability are controlling the benthic diazotrophy in this area. The molecular analysis confirms the presence of heterotrophic diazotrophs. This work improves our understanding of N cycling in OMZ sediments and the understanding of N sources in the marine environment.
Lothar Stramma, Tim Fischer, Damian S. Grundle, Gerd Krahmann, Hermann W. Bange, and Christa A. Marandino
Ocean Sci., 12, 861–873, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-12-861-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-12-861-2016, 2016
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Results from a research cruise on R/V Sonne to the eastern tropical Pacific in October 2015 during the 2015–2016 El Niño show the transition of current, hydrographic, and nutrient conditions to El Niño conditions in the eastern tropical Pacific in October 2015. Although in early 2015 the El Niño was strong and in October 2015 showed a clear El Niño influence on the EUC, in the eastern tropical Pacific the measurements only showed developing El Niño water mass distributions.
Carolin R. Löscher, Hermann W. Bange, Ruth A. Schmitz, Cameron M. Callbeck, Anja Engel, Helena Hauss, Torsten Kanzow, Rainer Kiko, Gaute Lavik, Alexandra Loginova, Frank Melzner, Judith Meyer, Sven C. Neulinger, Markus Pahlow, Ulf Riebesell, Harald Schunck, Sören Thomsen, and Hannes Wagner
Biogeosciences, 13, 3585–3606, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-3585-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-3585-2016, 2016
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The ocean loses oxygen due to climate change. Addressing this issue in tropical ocean regions (off Peru and Mauritania), we aimed to understand the effects of oxygen depletion on various aspects of marine biogeochemistry, including primary production and export production, the nitrogen cycle, greenhouse gas production, organic matter fluxes and remineralization, and the role of zooplankton and viruses.
Catherine A. Pfister, Mark A. Altabet, Santhiska Pather, and Greg Dwyer
Biogeosciences, 13, 3519–3531, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-3519-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-3519-2016, 2016
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It is increasingly recognized that marine animals host microbes relevant to nitrogen cycling. Rocky shore tidepools host a phylogenetically diverse biota that inspired us to experimentally isolate their effects on microbial nitrogen processing. We found that mussels promote high rates and diverse types of microbial nitrogen metabolisms. We further developed a novel mathematical model that quantified these diverse processes and showed their significance to nitrogen processing.
Denise Müller, Hermann W. Bange, Thorsten Warneke, Tim Rixen, Moritz Müller, Aazani Mujahid, and Justus Notholt
Biogeosciences, 13, 2415–2428, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-2415-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-2415-2016, 2016
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Estuaries act as sources of the greenhouse gases nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) to the atmosphere. We provide first measurements of N2O and CH4 in two estuaries in north-western Borneo, a region which is dominated by peatlands. We show that N2O and CH4 concentrations in these estuaries are moderate despite high organic carbon loads, that nutrient enhancement does not lead to enhanced N2O emissions, and that the wet season dominates the variability of the emissions in these systems.
Helena Hauss, Svenja Christiansen, Florian Schütte, Rainer Kiko, Miryam Edvam Lima, Elizandro Rodrigues, Johannes Karstensen, Carolin R. Löscher, Arne Körtzinger, and Björn Fiedler
Biogeosciences, 13, 1977–1989, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1977-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1977-2016, 2016
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In a low-oxygen eddy in the tropical Atlantic, total zooplankton biomass was increased. Larger plankton avoided the oxygen minimum zone (OMZ, < 20 µmol O2 kg−1). We identified four strategies by different plankton groups: (i) shallow OMZ avoidance and compression at surface, (ii) migration to shallow OMZ core during daytime, migration to surface at nighttime, (iii) residing in shallow OMZ day and night and (iv) migration through the shallow OMZ from oxygenated depths to surface and back.
Happy Hu, Annie Bourbonnais, Jennifer Larkum, Hermann W. Bange, and Mark A. Altabet
Biogeosciences, 13, 1453–1468, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1453-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1453-2016, 2016
Ulrike Lomnitz, Stefan Sommer, Andrew W. Dale, Carolin R. Löscher, Anna Noffke, Klaus Wallmann, and Christian Hensen
Biogeosciences, 13, 1367–1386, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1367-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1367-2016, 2016
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The study presents a P budget including the P input from the water column, the P burial in the sediments, as well as the P release from the sediments. We found that the P input could not maintain the P release rates. Consideration of other P sources, e.g., terrigenous P and P released from the dissolution of Fe oxyhydroxides, showed that none of these can account for the missing P. Thus, it is likely that abundant sulfide-oxidizing bacteria release the missing P during our measurement period.
Damian L. Arévalo-Martínez, Annette Kock, Carolin R. Löscher, Ruth A. Schmitz, Lothar Stramma, and Hermann W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 13, 1105–1118, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1105-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-1105-2016, 2016
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We present the first measurements of N2O across three mesoscale eddies in the eastern tropical South Pacific. Eddie's vertical structure, offshore transport, properties during its formation and near-surface primary production determined the N2O distribution. Substantial depletion of N2O within the core of anticyclonic eddies suggests that although these are transient features, N-loss processes within their centres can lead to an enhanced N2O sink which is not accounted for in marine N2O budgets.
A. Kock, D. L. Arévalo-Martínez, C. R. Löscher, and H. W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 13, 827–840, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-827-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-827-2016, 2016
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We measured the nitrous oxide (N2O) distribution in the water column in the oxygen minimum zone off Peru, an area with extremely high N2O emissions. Our data show very variable and often very high N2O concentrations in the water column at the coast, which lead to high N2O emissions when these waters are brought to the surface. The very high N2O production off Peru may be caused by high nutrient turnover rates together with rapid changes in the oxygen concentrations.
A. R. Baker, M. Thomas, H. W. Bange, and E. Plasencia Sánchez
Biogeosciences, 13, 817–825, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-817-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-817-2016, 2016
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Concentrations of major ions and trace metals were measured in aerosols off the coast of Peru in December 2012. A few trace metals (iron, copper, nickel, and cobalt) had anomalously high concentrations, which may be associated with industrial metal smelting activities in the region. The atmosphere appears to supply an excess of iron (relative to atmospheric nitrogen supply) to the phytoplankton community of the Peruvian upwelling system.
J. Meyer, C. R. Löscher, S. C. Neulinger, A. F. Reichel, A. Loginova, C. Borchard, R. A. Schmitz, H. Hauss, R. Kiko, and U. Riebesell
Biogeosciences, 13, 781–794, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-781-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-781-2016, 2016
D. Müller, T. Warneke, T. Rixen, M. Müller, A. Mujahid, H. W. Bange, and J. Notholt
Biogeosciences, 13, 691–705, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-691-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-13-691-2016, 2016
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We studied organic carbon and the dissolved greenhouse gases carbon dioxide (CO2) and carbon monoxide (CO) in two estuaries in Sarawak, Malaysia, whose coast is covered by carbon-rich peatlands. The estuaries received terrestrial organic carbon from peat-draining tributaries. A large fraction was converted to CO2 and a minor fraction to CO. Both gases were released to the atmosphere. This shows how these estuaries function as efficient filters between land and ocean in this important region.
L. Stramma, R. Czeschel, T. Tanhua, P. Brandt, M. Visbeck, and B. S. Giese
Ocean Sci., 12, 153–167, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-12-153-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-12-153-2016, 2016
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The subsurface circulation in the eastern tropical North Atlantic OMZ is derived from velocity, float and tracer data and data assimilation results, and shows a cyclonic flow around the Guinea Dome reaching into the oxygen minimum zone. The stronger cyclonic flow around the Guinea Dome in 2009 seem to be connected to a strong Atlantic Meridional Mode (AMM) event.
A continuous deoxygenation trend of the low oxygen layer was confirmed.
Eddy influence is weak south of the Cape Verde Islands.
C. R. Löscher, M. A. Fischer, S. C. Neulinger, B. Fiedler, M. Philippi, F. Schütte, A. Singh, H. Hauss, J. Karstensen, A. Körtzinger, S. Künzel, and R. A. Schmitz
Biogeosciences, 12, 7467–7482, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-7467-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-7467-2015, 2015
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The waters of the tropical Atlantic Open Ocean usually contain comparably high concentrations of oxygen. Now, it became clear that there are watermasses related to eddies that are nearly anoxic. We surveyed one of those eddies and found a biosphere that largely differed from the usual biosphere present in this area with a specific community responsible for primary production and for degradation processes. Further, we found the very first indication for active nitrogen loss in the open Atlantic.
H. E. Lutterbeck and H. W. Bange
Ocean Sci., 11, 937–946, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-937-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-937-2015, 2015
R. Czeschel, L. Stramma, R. A. Weller, and T. Fischer
Ocean Sci., 11, 455–470, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-455-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-11-455-2015, 2015
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Mean circulation in the eastern tropical South Pacific in 50-600m depth is modified by seasonal variability and eddies on the poleward side of the oxygen minimum zone(OMZ). Floats with parking depth at 400m show westward flow in the equatorial channel, sluggish flow in the northern part of the OMZ, and passage of eddies with oxygen anomalies. Net community production rates were estimated from a float. Oxygen decrease in 50-300m depth since 1976 is related to an increase in nitrate and phosphate.
P. Brandt, H. W. Bange, D. Banyte, M. Dengler, S.-H. Didwischus, T. Fischer, R. J. Greatbatch, J. Hahn, T. Kanzow, J. Karstensen, A. Körtzinger, G. Krahmann, S. Schmidtko, L. Stramma, T. Tanhua, and M. Visbeck
Biogeosciences, 12, 489–512, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-489-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-12-489-2015, 2015
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Our observational study looks at the structure of the eastern tropical North Atlantic (ETNA) oxygen minimum zone (OMZ) in comparison with the less-ventilated, eastern tropical South Pacific OMZ. We quantify the OMZ’s oxygen budget composed of consumption, advection, lateral and vertical mixing. Substantial oxygen variability is observed on interannual to multidecadal timescales. The deoxygenation of the ETNA OMZ during the last decades represents a substantial imbalance of the oxygen budget.
S. T. Lennartz, A. Lehmann, J. Herrford, F. Malien, H.-P. Hansen, H. Biester, and H. W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 11, 6323–6339, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-6323-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-6323-2014, 2014
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A time series of nine oceanic parameters from the coastal time series station Boknis Eck (BE, southwestern Baltic Sea) in the period of 1957-2013 is analysed with respect to seasonal cycles and long-term trends. Most striking was a paradoxical decreasing trend in oxygen with a simultaneous decline in eutrophication. Possible reasons for this paradox, e.g. processes related to warming temperatures such as increased decomposition of organic matter or altered ventilation, are discussed.
P. K. Swart, S. Evans, T. Capo, and M. A. Altabet
Biogeosciences, 11, 6147–6157, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-6147-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-6147-2014, 2014
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The ratio of nitrogen-15 to nitrogen-14 of macroalgae has been termed the DNA of sewage. Higher amounts of N-15 have been suggested to indicate the influence of sewage-derived N. But what exactly does the ratio of 15N/14N record?
We found that the nitrogen isotopic ratio was dependent upon not only the value in the water but also its concentration of nitrate. At low concentration there was little fractionation, but at higher values the uptake by algae left more of the N-15 in the water.
C. Ridame, J. Dekaezemacker, C. Guieu, S. Bonnet, S. L'Helguen, and F. Malien
Biogeosciences, 11, 4783–4800, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-4783-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-4783-2014, 2014
J. Friedrich, F. Janssen, D. Aleynik, H. W. Bange, N. Boltacheva, M. N. Çagatay, A. W. Dale, G. Etiope, Z. Erdem, M. Geraga, A. Gilli, M. T. Gomoiu, P. O. J. Hall, D. Hansson, Y. He, M. Holtappels, M. K. Kirf, M. Kononets, S. Konovalov, A. Lichtschlag, D. M. Livingstone, G. Marinaro, S. Mazlumyan, S. Naeher, R. P. North, G. Papatheodorou, O. Pfannkuche, R. Prien, G. Rehder, C. J. Schubert, T. Soltwedel, S. Sommer, H. Stahl, E. V. Stanev, A. Teaca, A. Tengberg, C. Waldmann, B. Wehrli, and F. Wenzhöfer
Biogeosciences, 11, 1215–1259, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-1215-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-11-1215-2014, 2014
D. L. Arévalo-Martínez, M. Beyer, M. Krumbholz, I. Piller, A. Kock, T. Steinhoff, A. Körtzinger, and H. W. Bange
Ocean Sci., 9, 1071–1087, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-9-1071-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-9-1071-2013, 2013
L. Stramma, H. W. Bange, R. Czeschel, A. Lorenzo, and M. Frank
Biogeosciences, 10, 7293–7306, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-7293-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-7293-2013, 2013
I.-N. Kim, K. Lee, H. W. Bange, and A. M. Macdonald
Biogeosciences, 10, 6783–6792, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-6783-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-6783-2013, 2013
C. A. Marandino, S. Tegtmeier, K. Krüger, C. Zindler, E. L. Atlas, F. Moore, and H. W. Bange
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 8427–8437, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-8427-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-8427-2013, 2013
K. Laß, H. W. Bange, and G. Friedrichs
Biogeosciences, 10, 5325–5334, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-5325-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-5325-2013, 2013
C. Zindler, A. Bracher, C. A. Marandino, B. Taylor, E. Torrecilla, A. Kock, and H. W. Bange
Biogeosciences, 10, 3297–3311, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-3297-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-3297-2013, 2013
V. J. Bertics, C. R. Löscher, I. Salonen, A. W. Dale, J. Gier, R. A. Schmitz, and T. Treude
Biogeosciences, 10, 1243–1258, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-1243-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-1243-2013, 2013
E. Montes, M. A. Altabet, F. E. Muller-Karger, M. I. Scranton, R. C. Thunell, C. Benitez-Nelson, L. Lorenzoni, and Y. M. Astor
Biogeosciences, 10, 267–279, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-267-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-10-267-2013, 2013
L. M. Zamora, A. Oschlies, H. W. Bange, K. B. Huebert, J. D. Craig, A. Kock, and C. R. Löscher
Biogeosciences, 9, 5007–5022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-9-5007-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-9-5007-2012, 2012
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Characteristics of surface physical and biogeochemical parameters within mesoscale eddies in the Southern Ocean
Seasonal dynamics and annual budget of dissolved inorganic carbon in the northwestern Mediterranean deep-convection region
The fingerprint of climate variability on the surface ocean cycling of iron and its isotopes
Reconstructing the ocean's mesopelagic zone carbon budget: sensitivity and estimation of parameters associated with prokaryotic remineralization
Seasonal cycles of biogeochemical fluxes in the Scotia Sea, Southern Ocean: a stable isotope approach
Absence of photophysiological response to iron addition in autumn phytoplankton in the Antarctic sea-ice zone
Optimal parameters for the ocean's nutrient, carbon, and oxygen cycles compensate for circulation biases but replumb the biological pump
Importance of multiple sources of iron for the upper-ocean biogeochemistry over the northern Indian Ocean
Exploring the role of different data types and timescales in the quality of marine biogeochemical model calibration
All about nitrite: exploring nitrite sources and sinks in the eastern tropical North Pacific oxygen minimum zone
Fossil coccolith morphological attributes as a new proxy for deep ocean carbonate chemistry
Reconstructing ocean carbon storage with CMIP6 Earth system models and synthetic Argo observations
Using machine learning and Biogeochemical-Argo (BGC-Argo) floats to assess biogeochemical models and optimize observing system design
The representation of alkalinity and the carbonate pump from CMIP5 to CMIP6 Earth system models and implications for the carbon cycle
Model estimates of metazoans' contributions to the biological carbon pump
Tracing differences in iron supply to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge valley between hydrothermal vent sites: implications for the addition of iron to the deep ocean
Nitrite cycling in the primary nitrite maxima of the eastern tropical North Pacific
Allanah Joy Paul, Mathias Haunost, Silvan Urs Goldenberg, Jens Hartmann, Nicolás Sánchez, Julieta Schneider, Niels Suitner, and Ulf Riebesell
Biogeosciences, 22, 2749–2766, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-2749-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-2749-2025, 2025
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Ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) is being assessed for its potential to absorb atmospheric CO2 and store it for a long time. OAE still needs comprehensive assessment of its safety and effectiveness. We studied an idealised OAE application in a natural low-nutrient ecosystem over 1 month. Our results showed that biogeochemical functioning remained mostly stable but that the long-term capability for storing carbon may be limited at high alkalinity concentration.
Alain Fumenia, Hubert Loisel, Rick A. Reynolds, and Dariusz Stramski
Biogeosciences, 22, 2461–2484, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-2461-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-2461-2025, 2025
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Particulate organic nitrogen (PON) plays a central role in ocean biogeochemistry, yet limited in situ data hinder a full understanding of PON variability and associated processes. Measurements of optical properties offer an alternative for assessing PON across diverse marine environments. Our analysis reveals strong relationships between PON and optical properties, supporting a promising means to assess PON from optical measurements performed in situ or conducted from remote-sensing platforms.
Madhavan Girijakumari Keerthi, Olivier Aumont, Lester Kwiatkowski, and Marina Levy
Biogeosciences, 22, 2163–2180, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-2163-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-2163-2025, 2025
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We assessed how well climate models replicate sub-seasonal changes in ocean chlorophyll observed by satellites. Models struggle to capture these variations accurately. Some overestimate fluctuations and their impact on annual chlorophyll variability, while others underestimate them. The underestimation is likely due to limited model resolution, while the overestimation may come from internal model oscillations.
Jens Terhaar
Biogeosciences, 22, 1631–1649, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-1631-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-1631-2025, 2025
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The ocean is a major natural carbon sink. Despite its importance, estimates of the ocean carbon sink remain uncertain. Here, I present a hybrid model estimate of the ocean carbon sink from 1959 to 2022. By combining ocean models in hindcast mode and Earth system models, I keep the strength of each approach and remove the respective weaknesses. This composite model estimate is similar in magnitude to the best estimate of the Global Carbon Budget but 70 % less uncertain.
Huailin Deng, Koji Suzuki, Ichiro Yasuda, Hiroshi Ogawa, and Jun Nishioka
Biogeosciences, 22, 1495–1508, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-1495-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-1495-2025, 2025
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Iron (Fe) and nitrate are vital for primary production in the North Pacific. Sedimentary Fe is carried by North Pacific Intermediate Water to the North Pacific, but the nutrient return path and its effect on phytoplankton are unclear. By combining Fe and macronutrient fluxes with phytoplankton composition, this study firstly revealed that Fe supply from the subsurface greatly controls diatom abundance and identified the nutrient return path in the subarctic gyre and Kuroshio–Oyashio transition area.
Alexandre Accardo, Rémi Laxenaire, Alberto Baudena, Sabrina Speich, Rainer Kiko, and Lars Stemmann
Biogeosciences, 22, 1183–1201, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-1183-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-1183-2025, 2025
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The open ocean helps mitigate climate change by storing CO2 via the biological carbon pump (BCP), which involves processes like organic carbon production at the surface and transferring it to the deep ocean via various pathways. By deploying an autonomous platform, we found significant marine snow accumulation from the surface to the mesopelagic zone in frontal regions between eddies. We suggest that the coupling of hydrodynamics at eddy edges and biological activity may enhance this process.
Naoya Kanna, Kazutaka Tateyama, Takuji Waseda, Anna Timofeeva, Maria Papadimitraki, Laura Whitmore, Hajime Obata, Daiki Nomura, Hiroshi Ogawa, Youhei Yamashita, and Igor Polyakov
Biogeosciences, 22, 1057–1076, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-1057-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-1057-2025, 2025
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This article presents data on iron and manganese, essential micronutrients for primary producers in the Arctic Laptev and East Siberian seas (LESS). There, observations were made through international cooperation with the Nansen and Amundsen Basin Observational System expedition during the late summer of 2021. The results from this study indicate that the major sources controlling the iron and manganese distributions on the LESS continental margins are river discharge and shelf sediment input.
Ben J. Fisher, Alex J. Poulton, Michael P. Meredith, Kimberlee Baldry, Oscar Schofield, and Sian F. Henley
Biogeosciences, 22, 975–994, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-975-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-975-2025, 2025
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The Southern Ocean is a rapidly warming environment, with subsequent impacts on ecosystems and biogeochemical cycling. This study examines changes in phytoplankton and biogeochemistry using a range of climate models. Under climate change, the Southern Ocean will be warmer, more acidic and more productive and will have reduced nutrient availability by 2100. However, there is substantial variability between models across key productivity parameters. We propose ways of reducing this uncertainty.
David Curbelo-Hernández, Fiz F. Pérez, Melchor González-Dávila, Sergey V. Gladyshev, Aridane G. González, David González-Santana, Antón Velo, Alexey Sokov, and J. Magdalena Santana-Casiano
Biogeosciences, 21, 5561–5589, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-5561-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-5561-2024, 2024
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The study evaluated CO2–carbonate system dynamics in the North Atlantic subpolar gyre during 2009–2019. Significant ocean acidification, largely due to rising anthropogenic CO2 levels, was found. Cooling, freshening, and enhanced convective processes intensified this trend, affecting calcite and aragonite saturation. The findings contribute to a deeper understanding of ocean acidification and improve our knowledge about its impact on marine ecosystems.
Yuye Han, Zvi Steiner, Zhimian Cao, Di Fan, Junhui Chen, Jimin Yu, and Minhan Dai
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3492, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3492, 2024
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Coccolithophore calcite accounts for a major fraction of particulate inorganic carbon (PIC) standing stocks in the western North Pacific, with a markedly higher contribution in the oligotrophic subtropical gyre than in the Kuroshio-Oyashio transition region, which highlights the importance of coccolithophores for PIC production in the pelagic ocean. We also found extensive dissolution of coccolithophore calcite in the oversaturated shallow waters primarily driven by microbial metabolic activity.
Yawouvi Dodji Soviadan, Miriam Beck, Joelle Habib, Alberto Baudena, Laetitia Drago, Alexandre Accardo, Remi Laxenaire, Sabrina Speich, Peter Brandt, Rainer Kiko, and Lars Stemmann
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3302, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3302, 2024
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Key parameters representing the gravity flux in global models are the sinking speed and the vertical attenuation of the exported material. We calculate for the first time, these parameters in situ for 6 intermittent blooms followed by export events using high-resolution (3 days) time series of 0–1000 m depth profiles from imaging sensor mounted on an Argo float. We show that sinking speed depends not only on size but also on the morphology of the particles, density being an important property.
Medhavi Pandey, Haimanti Biswas, Daniel Birgel, Nicole Burdanowitz, and Birgit Gaye
Biogeosciences, 21, 4681–4698, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-4681-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-4681-2024, 2024
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We analysed sea surface temperature (SST) proxy and plankton biomarkers in sediments that accumulate sinking material signatures from surface waters in the central Arabian Sea (21°–11° N, 64° E), a tropical basin impacted by monsoons. We saw a north–south SST gradient, and the biological proxies showed more organic matter from larger algae in the north. Smaller algae and zooplankton were more numerous in the south. These trends were related to ocean–atmospheric processes and oxygen availability.
Allison Hogikyan and Laure Resplandy
Biogeosciences, 21, 4621–4636, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-4621-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-4621-2024, 2024
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Rising atmospheric CO2 influences ocean carbon chemistry, leading to ocean acidification. Global warming introduces spatial patterns in the intensity of ocean acidification. We show that the most prominent spatial patterns are controlled by warming-driven changes in rainfall and evaporation, not by the direct effect of warming on carbon chemistry and pH. These evaporation and rainfall patterns oppose acidification in saltier parts of the ocean and enhance acidification in fresher regions.
Shunya Koseki, Lander R. Crespo, Jerry Tjiputra, Filippa Fransner, Noel S. Keenlyside, and David Rivas
Biogeosciences, 21, 4149–4168, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-4149-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-4149-2024, 2024
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We investigated how the physical biases of an Earth system model influence the marine biogeochemical processes in the tropical Atlantic. With four different configurations of the model, we have shown that the versions with better SST reproduction tend to better represent the primary production and air–sea CO2 flux in terms of climatology, seasonal cycle, and response to climate variability.
Lyuba Novi, Annalisa Bracco, Takamitsu Ito, and Yohei Takano
Biogeosciences, 21, 3985–4005, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3985-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3985-2024, 2024
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We explored the relationship between oxygen and stratification in the North Pacific Ocean using a combination of data mining and machine learning. We used isopycnic potential vorticity (IPV) as an indicator to quantify ocean ventilation and analyzed its predictability, a strong O2–IPV connection, and predictability for IPV in the tropical Pacific. This opens new routes for monitoring ocean O2 through few observational sites co-located with more abundant IPV measurements in the tropical Pacific.
Winfred Marshal, Jing Xiang Chung, Nur Hidayah Roseli, Roswati Md Amin, and Mohd Fadzil Bin Mohd Akhir
Biogeosciences, 21, 4007–4035, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-4007-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-4007-2024, 2024
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This study stands out for thoroughly examining CMIP6 ESMs' ability to simulate biogeochemical variables in the southern South China Sea, an economically important region. It assesses variables like chlorophyll, phytoplankton, nitrate, and oxygen on annual and seasonal scales. While global assessments exist, this study addresses a gap by objectively ranking 13 CMIP6 ocean biogeochemistry models' performance at a regional level, focusing on replicating specific observed biogeochemical variables.
Jens Terhaar
Biogeosciences, 21, 3903–3926, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3903-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3903-2024, 2024
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Despite the ocean’s importance in the carbon cycle and hence the climate, observing the ocean carbon sink remains challenging. Here, I use an ensemble of 12 models to understand drivers of decadal trends of the past, present, and future ocean carbon sink. I show that 80 % of the decadal trends in the multi-model mean ocean carbon sink can be explained by changes in decadal trends in atmospheric CO2. The remaining 20 % are due to internal climate variability and ocean heat uptake.
Reiner Steinfeldt, Monika Rhein, and Dagmar Kieke
Biogeosciences, 21, 3839–3867, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3839-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3839-2024, 2024
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We calculate the amount of anthropogenic carbon (Cant) in the Atlantic for the years 1990, 2000, 2010 and 2020. Cant is the carbon that is taken up by the ocean as a result of humanmade CO2 emissions. To determine the amount of Cant, we apply a technique that is based on the observations of other humanmade gases (e.g., chlorofluorocarbons). Regionally, changes in ocean ventilation have an impact on the storage of Cant. Overall, the increase in Cant is driven by the rising CO2 in the atmosphere.
Stephanie Delacroix, Tor Jensen Nystuen, August E. Dessen Tobiesen, Andrew L. King, and Erik Höglund
Biogeosciences, 21, 3677–3690, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3677-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3677-2024, 2024
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The addition of alkaline minerals into the ocean might reduce excessive anthropogenic CO2 emissions. Magnesium hydroxide can be added in large amounts because of its low seawater solubility without reaching harmful pH levels. The toxicity effect results of magnesium hydroxide, by simulating the expected concentrations from a ship's dispersion scenario, demonstrated low impacts on both sensitive and local assemblages of marine microalgae when compared to calcium hydroxide.
Brandon Stephens, Montserrat Roca-Martí, Amy Maas, Vinícius Amaral, Samantha Clevenger, Shawnee Traylor, Claudia Benitez-Nelson, Philip Boyd, Ken Buesseler, Craig Carlson, Nicolas Cassar, Margaret Estapa, Andrea Fassbender, Yibin Huang, Phoebe Lam, Olivier Marchal, Susanne Menden-Deuer, Nicola Paul, Alyson Santoro, David Siegel, and David Nicholson
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2251, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2251, 2024
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The ocean’s mesopelagic zone (MZ) plays a crucial role in the global carbon cycle. This study combines new and previously published measurements of organic carbon supply and demand collected in August 2018 for the MZ in the subarctic North Pacific Ocean. Supply was insufficient to meet demand in August, but supply entering into the MZ in the spring of 2018 could have met the August demand. Results suggest observations over seasonal time scales may help to close MZ carbon budgets.
Precious Mongwe, Matthew Long, Takamitsu Ito, Curtis Deutsch, and Yeray Santana-Falcón
Biogeosciences, 21, 3477–3490, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3477-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3477-2024, 2024
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We use a collection of measurements that capture the physiological sensitivity of organisms to temperature and oxygen and a CESM1 large ensemble to investigate how natural climate variations and climate warming will impact the ability of marine heterotrophic marine organisms to support habitats in the future. We find that warming and dissolved oxygen loss over the next several decades will reduce the volume of ocean habitats and will increase organisms' vulnerability to extremes.
Charly A. Moras, Tyler Cyronak, Lennart T. Bach, Renaud Joannes-Boyau, and Kai G. Schulz
Biogeosciences, 21, 3463–3475, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3463-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3463-2024, 2024
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We investigate the effects of mineral grain size and seawater salinity on magnesium hydroxide dissolution and calcium carbonate precipitation kinetics for ocean alkalinity enhancement. Salinity did not affect the dissolution, but calcium carbonate formed earlier at lower salinities due to the lower magnesium and dissolved organic carbon concentrations. Smaller grain sizes dissolved faster but calcium carbonate precipitated earlier, suggesting that medium grain sizes are optimal for kinetics.
Rosie M. Sheward, Christina Gebühr, Jörg Bollmann, and Jens O. Herrle
Biogeosciences, 21, 3121–3141, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3121-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-3121-2024, 2024
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How quickly do marine microorganisms respond to salinity stress? Our experiments with the calcifying marine plankton Emiliania huxleyi show that growth and cell morphology responded to salinity stress within as little as 24–48 hours, demonstrating that morphology and calcification are sensitive to salinity over a range of timescales. Our results have implications for understanding the short-term role of E. huxleyi in biogeochemical cycles and in size-based paleoproxies for salinity.
Laura Marín-Samper, Javier Arístegui, Nauzet Hernández-Hernández, Joaquín Ortiz, Stephen D. Archer, Andrea Ludwig, and Ulf Riebesell
Biogeosciences, 21, 2859–2876, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2859-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2859-2024, 2024
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Our planet is facing a climate crisis. Scientists are working on innovative solutions that will aid in capturing the hard to abate emissions before it is too late. Exciting research reveals that ocean alkalinity enhancement, a key climate change mitigation strategy, does not harm phytoplankton, the cornerstone of marine ecosystems. Through meticulous study, we may have uncovered a positive relationship: up to a specific limit, enhancing ocean alkalinity boosts photosynthesis by certain species.
Kieran Curran, Tracy Villareal, and Robert T. Letscher
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1416, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1416, 2024
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This work provides a two year record of marine organic gel concentrations from an open ocean site in the subtropical North Pacific Ocean north of Hawaii. These microscopic gels are investigated to understand their importance as an understudied component of organic matter cycling by marine microbes. We find an important role for gel cycling during the summer months, helping explain previously contradictory estimates of nutrient supply and demand for the subtropical ocean.
France Van Wambeke, Pascal Conan, Mireille Pujo-Pay, Vincent Taillandier, Olivier Crispi, Alexandra Pavlidou, Sandra Nunige, Morgane Didry, Christophe Salmeron, and Elvira Pulido-Villena
Biogeosciences, 21, 2621–2640, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2621-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2621-2024, 2024
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Phosphomonoesterase (PME) and phosphodiesterase (PDE) activities over the epipelagic zone are described in the eastern Mediterranean Sea in winter and autumn. The types of concentration kinetics obtained for PDE (saturation at 50 µM, high Km, high turnover times) compared to those of PME (saturation at 1 µM, low Km, low turnover times) are discussed in regard to the possible inequal distribution of PDE and PME in the size continuum of organic material and accessibility to phosphodiesters.
Jenny Hieronymus, Magnus Hieronymus, Matthias Gröger, Jörg Schwinger, Raffaele Bernadello, Etienne Tourigny, Valentina Sicardi, Itzel Ruvalcaba Baroni, and Klaus Wyser
Biogeosciences, 21, 2189–2206, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2189-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-2189-2024, 2024
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The timing of the net primary production annual maxima in the North Atlantic in the period 1750–2100 is investigated using two Earth system models and the high-emissions scenario SSP5-8.5. It is found that, for most of the region, the annual maxima occur progressively earlier, with the most change occurring after the year 2000. Shifts in the seasonality of the primary production may impact the entire ecosystem, which highlights the need for long-term monitoring campaigns in this area.
Nicole M. Travis, Colette L. Kelly, and Karen L. Casciotti
Biogeosciences, 21, 1985–2004, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1985-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1985-2024, 2024
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We conducted experimental manipulations of light level on microbial communities from the primary nitrite maximum. Overall, while individual microbial processes have different directions and magnitudes in their response to increasing light, the net community response is a decline in nitrite production with increasing light. We conclude that while increased light may decrease net nitrite production, high-light conditions alone do not exclude nitrification from occurring in the surface ocean.
Zoë Rebecca van Kemenade, Zeynep Erdem, Ellen Christine Hopmans, Jaap Smede Sinninghe Damsté, and Darci Rush
Biogeosciences, 21, 1517–1532, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1517-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1517-2024, 2024
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The California Current system (CCS) hosts the eastern subtropical North Pacific oxygen minimum zone (ESTNP OMZ). This study shows anaerobic ammonium oxidizing (anammox) bacteria cause a loss of bioavailable nitrogen (N) in the ESTNP OMZ throughout the late Quaternary. Anammox occurred during both glacial and interglacial periods and was driven by the supply of organic matter and changes in ocean currents. These findings may have important consequences for biogeochemical models of the CCS.
Cathy Wimart-Rousseau, Tobias Steinhoff, Birgit Klein, Henry Bittig, and Arne Körtzinger
Biogeosciences, 21, 1191–1211, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1191-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1191-2024, 2024
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The marine CO2 system can be measured independently and continuously by BGC-Argo floats since numerous pH sensors have been developed to suit these autonomous measurements platforms. By applying the Argo correction routines to float pH data acquired in the subpolar North Atlantic Ocean, we report the uncertainty and lack of objective criteria associated with the choice of the reference method as well the reference depth for the pH correction.
Sabine Mecking and Kyla Drushka
Biogeosciences, 21, 1117–1133, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1117-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-1117-2024, 2024
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This study investigates whether northeastern North Pacific oxygen changes may be caused by surface density changes in the northwest as water moves along density horizons from the surface into the subsurface ocean. A correlation is found with a lag that about matches the travel time of water from the northwest to the northeast. Salinity is the main driver causing decadal changes in surface density, whereas salinity and temperature contribute about equally to long-term declining density trends.
Takamitsu Ito, Hernan E. Garcia, Zhankun Wang, Shoshiro Minobe, Matthew C. Long, Just Cebrian, James Reagan, Tim Boyer, Christopher Paver, Courtney Bouchard, Yohei Takano, Seth Bushinsky, Ahron Cervania, and Curtis A. Deutsch
Biogeosciences, 21, 747–759, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-747-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-747-2024, 2024
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This study aims to estimate how much oceanic oxygen has been lost and its uncertainties. One major source of uncertainty comes from the statistical gap-filling methods. Outputs from Earth system models are used to generate synthetic observations where oxygen data are extracted from the model output at the location and time of historical oceanographic cruises. Reconstructed oxygen trend is approximately two-thirds of the true trend.
Robert W. Izett, Katja Fennel, Adam C. Stoer, and David P. Nicholson
Biogeosciences, 21, 13–47, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-13-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-13-2024, 2024
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This paper provides an overview of the capacity to expand the global coverage of marine primary production estimates using autonomous ocean-going instruments, called Biogeochemical-Argo floats. We review existing approaches to quantifying primary production using floats, provide examples of the current implementation of the methods, and offer insights into how they can be better exploited. This paper is timely, given the ongoing expansion of the Biogeochemical-Argo array.
Qian Liu, Yingjie Liu, and Xiaofeng Li
Biogeosciences, 20, 4857–4874, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4857-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4857-2023, 2023
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In the Southern Ocean, abundant eddies behave opposite to our expectations. That is, anticyclonic (cyclonic) eddies are cold (warm). By investigating the variations of physical and biochemical parameters in eddies, we find that abnormal eddies have unique and significant effects on modulating the parameters. This study fills a gap in understanding the effects of abnormal eddies on physical and biochemical parameters in the Southern Ocean.
Caroline Ulses, Claude Estournel, Patrick Marsaleix, Karline Soetaert, Marine Fourrier, Laurent Coppola, Dominique Lefèvre, Franck Touratier, Catherine Goyet, Véronique Guglielmi, Fayçal Kessouri, Pierre Testor, and Xavier Durrieu de Madron
Biogeosciences, 20, 4683–4710, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4683-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4683-2023, 2023
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Deep convection plays a key role in the circulation, thermodynamics, and biogeochemical cycles in the Mediterranean Sea, considered to be a hotspot of biodiversity and climate change. In this study, we investigate the seasonal and annual budget of dissolved inorganic carbon in the deep-convection area of the northwestern Mediterranean Sea.
Daniela König and Alessandro Tagliabue
Biogeosciences, 20, 4197–4212, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4197-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4197-2023, 2023
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Using model simulations, we show that natural and anthropogenic changes in the global climate leave a distinct fingerprint in the isotopic signatures of iron in the surface ocean. We find that these climate effects on iron isotopes are often caused by the redistribution of iron from different external sources to the ocean, due to changes in ocean currents, and by changes in algal growth, which take up iron. Thus, isotopes may help detect climate-induced changes in iron supply and algal uptake.
Chloé Baumas, Robin Fuchs, Marc Garel, Jean-Christophe Poggiale, Laurent Memery, Frédéric A. C. Le Moigne, and Christian Tamburini
Biogeosciences, 20, 4165–4182, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4165-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4165-2023, 2023
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Through the sink of particles in the ocean, carbon (C) is exported and sequestered when reaching 1000 m. Attempts to quantify C exported vs. C consumed by heterotrophs have increased. Yet most of the conducted estimations have led to C demands several times higher than C export. The choice of parameters greatly impacts the results. As theses parameters are overlooked, non-accurate values are often used. In this study we show that C budgets can be well balanced when using appropriate values.
Anna Belcher, Sian F. Henley, Katharine Hendry, Marianne Wootton, Lisa Friberg, Ursula Dallman, Tong Wang, Christopher Coath, and Clara Manno
Biogeosciences, 20, 3573–3591, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3573-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3573-2023, 2023
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The oceans play a crucial role in the uptake of atmospheric carbon dioxide, particularly the Southern Ocean. The biological pumping of carbon from the surface to the deep ocean is key to this. Using sediment trap samples from the Scotia Sea, we examine biogeochemical fluxes of carbon, nitrogen, and biogenic silica and their stable isotope compositions. We find phytoplankton community structure and physically mediated processes are important controls on particulate fluxes to the deep ocean.
Asmita Singh, Susanne Fietz, Sandy J. Thomalla, Nicolas Sanchez, Murat V. Ardelan, Sébastien Moreau, Hanna M. Kauko, Agneta Fransson, Melissa Chierici, Saumik Samanta, Thato N. Mtshali, Alakendra N. Roychoudhury, and Thomas J. Ryan-Keogh
Biogeosciences, 20, 3073–3091, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3073-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-3073-2023, 2023
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Despite the scarcity of iron in the Southern Ocean, seasonal blooms occur due to changes in nutrient and light availability. Surprisingly, during an autumn bloom in the Antarctic sea-ice zone, the results from incubation experiments showed no significant photophysiological response of phytoplankton to iron addition. This suggests that ambient iron concentrations were sufficient, challenging the notion of iron deficiency in the Southern Ocean through extended iron-replete post-bloom conditions.
Benoît Pasquier, Mark Holzer, Matthew A. Chamberlain, Richard J. Matear, Nathaniel L. Bindoff, and François W. Primeau
Biogeosciences, 20, 2985–3009, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2985-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2985-2023, 2023
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Modeling the ocean's carbon and oxygen cycles accurately is challenging. Parameter optimization improves the fit to observed tracers but can introduce artifacts in the biological pump. Organic-matter production and subsurface remineralization rates adjust to compensate for circulation biases, changing the pathways and timescales with which nutrients return to the surface. Circulation biases can thus strongly alter the system’s response to ecological change, even when parameters are optimized.
Priyanka Banerjee
Biogeosciences, 20, 2613–2643, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2613-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2613-2023, 2023
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This study shows that atmospheric deposition is the most important source of iron to the upper northern Indian Ocean for phytoplankton growth. This is followed by iron from continental-shelf sediment. Phytoplankton increase following iron addition is possible only with high background levels of nitrate. Vertical mixing is the most important physical process supplying iron to the upper ocean in this region throughout the year. The importance of ocean currents in supplying iron varies seasonally.
Iris Kriest, Julia Getzlaff, Angela Landolfi, Volkmar Sauerland, Markus Schartau, and Andreas Oschlies
Biogeosciences, 20, 2645–2669, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2645-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2645-2023, 2023
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Global biogeochemical ocean models are often subjectively assessed and tuned against observations. We applied different strategies to calibrate a global model against observations. Although the calibrated models show similar tracer distributions at the surface, they differ in global biogeochemical fluxes, especially in global particle flux. Simulated global volume of oxygen minimum zones varies strongly with calibration strategy and over time, rendering its temporal extrapolation difficult.
John C. Tracey, Andrew R. Babbin, Elizabeth Wallace, Xin Sun, Katherine L. DuRussel, Claudia Frey, Donald E. Martocello III, Tyler Tamasi, Sergey Oleynik, and Bess B. Ward
Biogeosciences, 20, 2499–2523, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2499-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2499-2023, 2023
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Nitrogen (N) is essential for life; thus, its availability plays a key role in determining marine productivity. Using incubations of seawater spiked with a rare form of N measurable on a mass spectrometer, we quantified microbial pathways that determine marine N availability. The results show that pathways that recycle N have higher rates than those that result in its loss from biomass and present new evidence for anaerobic nitrite oxidation, a process long thought to be strictly aerobic.
Amanda Gerotto, Hongrui Zhang, Renata Hanae Nagai, Heather M. Stoll, Rubens César Lopes Figueira, Chuanlian Liu, and Iván Hernández-Almeida
Biogeosciences, 20, 1725–1739, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1725-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1725-2023, 2023
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Based on the analysis of the response of coccolithophores’ morphological attributes in a laboratory dissolution experiment and surface sediment samples from the South China Sea, we proposed that the thickness shape (ks) factor of fossil coccoliths together with the normalized ks variation, which is the ratio of the standard deviation of ks (σ) over the mean ks (σ/ks), is a robust and novel proxy to reconstruct past changes in deep ocean carbon chemistry.
Katherine E. Turner, Doug M. Smith, Anna Katavouta, and Richard G. Williams
Biogeosciences, 20, 1671–1690, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1671-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1671-2023, 2023
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We present a new method for reconstructing ocean carbon using climate models and temperature and salinity observations. To test this method, we reconstruct modelled carbon using synthetic observations consistent with current sampling programmes. Sensitivity tests show skill in reconstructing carbon trends and variability within the upper 2000 m. Our results indicate that this method can be used for a new global estimate for ocean carbon content.
Alexandre Mignot, Hervé Claustre, Gianpiero Cossarini, Fabrizio D'Ortenzio, Elodie Gutknecht, Julien Lamouroux, Paolo Lazzari, Coralie Perruche, Stefano Salon, Raphaëlle Sauzède, Vincent Taillandier, and Anna Teruzzi
Biogeosciences, 20, 1405–1422, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1405-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1405-2023, 2023
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Numerical models of ocean biogeochemistry are becoming a major tool to detect and predict the impact of climate change on marine resources and monitor ocean health. Here, we demonstrate the use of the global array of BGC-Argo floats for the assessment of biogeochemical models. We first detail the handling of the BGC-Argo data set for model assessment purposes. We then present 23 assessment metrics to quantify the consistency of BGC model simulations with respect to BGC-Argo data.
Alban Planchat, Lester Kwiatkowski, Laurent Bopp, Olivier Torres, James R. Christian, Momme Butenschön, Tomas Lovato, Roland Séférian, Matthew A. Chamberlain, Olivier Aumont, Michio Watanabe, Akitomo Yamamoto, Andrew Yool, Tatiana Ilyina, Hiroyuki Tsujino, Kristen M. Krumhardt, Jörg Schwinger, Jerry Tjiputra, John P. Dunne, and Charles Stock
Biogeosciences, 20, 1195–1257, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1195-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1195-2023, 2023
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Ocean alkalinity is critical to the uptake of atmospheric carbon and acidification in surface waters. We review the representation of alkalinity and the associated calcium carbonate cycle in Earth system models. While many parameterizations remain present in the latest generation of models, there is a general improvement in the simulated alkalinity distribution. This improvement is related to an increase in the export of biotic calcium carbonate, which closer resembles observations.
Jérôme Pinti, Tim DeVries, Tommy Norin, Camila Serra-Pompei, Roland Proud, David A. Siegel, Thomas Kiørboe, Colleen M. Petrik, Ken H. Andersen, Andrew S. Brierley, and André W. Visser
Biogeosciences, 20, 997–1009, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-997-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-997-2023, 2023
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Large numbers of marine organisms such as zooplankton and fish perform daily vertical migration between the surface (at night) and the depths (in the daytime). This fascinating migration is important for the carbon cycle, as these organisms actively bring carbon to depths where it is stored away from the atmosphere for a long time. Here, we quantify the contributions of different animals to this carbon drawdown and storage and show that fish are important to the biological carbon pump.
Alastair J. M. Lough, Alessandro Tagliabue, Clément Demasy, Joseph A. Resing, Travis Mellett, Neil J. Wyatt, and Maeve C. Lohan
Biogeosciences, 20, 405–420, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-405-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-405-2023, 2023
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Iron is a key nutrient for ocean primary productivity. Hydrothermal vents are a source of iron to the oceans, but the size of this source is poorly understood. This study examines the variability in iron inputs between hydrothermal vents in different geological settings. The vents studied release different amounts of Fe, resulting in plumes with similar dissolved iron concentrations but different particulate concentrations. This will help to refine modelling of iron-limited ocean productivity.
Nicole M. Travis, Colette L. Kelly, Margaret R. Mulholland, and Karen L. Casciotti
Biogeosciences, 20, 325–347, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-325-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-325-2023, 2023
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The primary nitrite maximum is a ubiquitous upper ocean feature where nitrite accumulates, but we still do not understand its formation and the co-occurring microbial processes involved. Using correlative methods and rates measurements, we found strong spatial patterns between environmental conditions and depths of the nitrite maxima, but not the maximum concentrations. Nitrification was the dominant source of nitrite, with occasional high nitrite production from phytoplankton near the coast.
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Short summary
The ocean is full of eddies and they play a key role for ocean biogeochemistry. In order to understand dinitrogen (N2) fixation, one major control of oceanic primary production, we investigated three eddies in the eastern tropical South Pacific off Peru. We conducted the first detailed survey and found increased N2 fixation in the oxygen-depleted cores of anticyclonic mode water eddies. Taken together, we could – for the first time – show that eddies play an important role in N2 fixation off Peru.
The ocean is full of eddies and they play a key role for ocean biogeochemistry. In order to...
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