Drivers of particle sinking velocities in the Peruvian upwelling system

Baumann, Moritz; Paul, Allanah Joy; Taucher, Jan; Bach, Lennart Thomas; Goldenberg, Silvan; Stange, Paul; Minutolo, Fabrizio; Riebesell, Ulf

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2595-2023

Articles | Volume 20, issue 13

https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2595-2023

© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Special issue:

Ecological and biogeochemical functioning of the coastal upwelling...

https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2595-2023

© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 20, issue 13

Research article

|

05 Jul 2023

Research article |

| 05 Jul 2023

Drivers of particle sinking velocities in the Peruvian upwelling system

Moritz Baumann, Allanah Joy Paul, Jan Taucher, Lennart Thomas Bach, Silvan Goldenberg, Paul Stange, Fabrizio Minutolo, and Ulf Riebesell

Data sets

KOSMOS 2017 Peru mesocosm study: export flux and particle sinking velocities Moritz Baumann, Allanah Joy Paul, Jan Taucher, Lennart Thomas Bach, Silvan Urs Goldenberg, Paul Stange, Fabrizio Minutolo, and Ulf Riebesell https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.948573

KOSMOS 2017 Peru mesocosm study: single particle measurements of sinking velocity and physical properties Moritz Baumann, Allanah Joy Paul, Jan Taucher, Lennart Thomas Bach, Silvan Urs Goldenberg, Paul Stange, Fabrizio Minutolo, and Ulf Riebesell https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.948574

Short summary

The sinking velocity of marine particles affects how much atmospheric CO₂ is stored inside our oceans. We measured particle sinking velocities in the Peruvian upwelling system and assessed their physical and biochemical drivers. We found that sinking velocity was mainly influenced by particle size and porosity, while ballasting minerals played only a minor role. Our findings help us to better understand the particle sinking dynamics in this highly productive marine system.