Articles | Volume 23, issue 9
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-3179-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-3179-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
08 May 2026
Research article |
| 08 May 2026
| 08 May 2026
Complexity in biogeochemical models: consequences for the biological carbon pump
Jonathan Rogerson
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, LSCE/IPSL, CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
Alessandro Tagliabue
Department of Earth Ocean, and Ecological Sciences, School of Environmental Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
Agathe Nguyen
Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, LSCE/IPSL, CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
Marcello Vichi
Department of Oceanography, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, Republic of South Africa
Marine and Antarctic Research centre for the Innovation and Sustainability (MARIS), Cape Town, Republic of South Africa
Lewis Wrightson
Department of Earth Ocean, and Ecological Sciences, School of Environmental Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
Prima Anugerahanti
Department of Earth Ocean, and Ecological Sciences, School of Environmental Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
National Oceanography Centre, Liverpool, United Kingdom
Olivier Aumont
Sorbonne Université, CNRS/IRD/MNHN, LOCEAN-IPSL, Paris, France
Marion Gehlen
Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, LSCE/IPSL, CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
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Nicolas Metzl, Bronte Tilbrook, John Akl, Craig Neill, Alexandra Aymard, Claire Lo Monaco, Gilles Reverdin, Jean-Baptiste Sallée, Aude Barton, Frédéric Chevallier, and Marion Gehlen
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1664, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2026-1664, 2026
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Biogeosciences (BG).
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Ocean acidification is explored in the Adélie Land coastal region in East Antarctica. The region is a permanent CO2 sink leading to a positive increase of total CO2 concentrations and to a progressive decrease of pH and aragonite Ωar. The lowest surface Ωar of 1.2 was observed in winter 2024, a critical limit for some marine species such as pteropod. A projection in the future suggests that aragonite saturation state will occur as soon as 2055 in the Adélie Land region.
Li-Qing Jiang, Amanda Fay, Jens Daniel Müller, Luke Gregor, Alizée Roobaert, Lydia Keppler, Dustin Carroll, Siv K. Lauvset, Tim DeVries, Judith Hauck, Christian Rödenbeck, Nicolas Metzl, Andrea J. Fassbender, Jean-Pierre Gattuso, Peter Landschützer, Rik Wanninkhof, Christopher Sabine, Simone R. Alin, Mario Hoppema, Are Olsen, Matthew P. Humphreys, Kunal Chakraborty, Ana C. Franco, Kumiko Azetsu-Scott, Dorothee C. E. Bakker, Leticia Barbero, Nicholas R. Bates, Nicole Besemer, Henry C. Bittig, Albert E. Boyd, Daniel Broullón, Wei-Jun Cai, Brendan R. Carter, Thi-Tuyet-Trang Chau, Chen-Tung Arthur Chen, Frédéric Cyr, John E. Dore, Ian Enochs, Richard A. Feely, Hernan E. Garcia, Marion Gehlen, Prasanna Kanti Ghoshal, Lucas Gloege, Melchor González-Dávila, Nicolas Gruber, Debby Ianson, Yosuke Iida, Masao Ishii, Apurva Padamnabh Joshi, Esther Kennedy, Alex Kozyr, Nico Lange, Claire Lo Monaco, Derek P. Manzello, Galen A. McKinley, Natalie M. Monacci, Xose A. Padin, Ana M. Palacio-Castro, Fiz F. Pérez, J. Magdalena Santana-Casiano, Jonathan Sharp, Adrienne Sutton, Jim Swift, Toste Tanhua, Maciej Telszewski, Jens Terhaar, Ruben van Hooidonk, Anton Velo, Andrew J. Watson, Angelicque E. White, Zelun Wu, Liang Xue, Hyelim Yoo, Jiye Zeng, and Guorong Zhong
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 18, 1405–1462, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-18-1405-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-18-1405-2026, 2026
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This review article provides an overview of 68 existing ocean carbonate chemistry data products and data product sets, encompassing a broad range of types, including compilations of cruise datasets, gap-filled observational products, model simulations, and more. It is designed to help researchers identify and access the data products that best support their scientific objectives, thereby facilitating progress in understanding the ocean's changing carbonate chemistry.
Noelle A. Held, Korinna Kunde, Clare E. Davis, Neil J. Wyatt, Elizabeth L. Mann, E. Malcolm S. Woodward, Matthew McIlvin, Alessandro Tagliabue, Benjamin S. Twining, Claire Mahaffey, Mak A. Saito, and Maeve C. Lohan
Biogeosciences, 23, 923–938, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-923-2026, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-23-923-2026, 2026
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Microbial enzymes are critical to marine biogeochemical cycles, but which microbes are producing those enzymes? We used a targeted proteomics method to quantify how much Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus contribute to surface ocean alkaline phosphatase activity. We find that alkaline phosphatase abundance is limited by the availability of iron, zinc and cobalt (which may substitute for zinc).
Jeanne Dombret, Hugo Bellenger, Xavier Perrot, Laëtitia Parc, Lester Kwiatkowski, Frédéric Chevallier, Laurent Bopp, Marion Gehlen, Roland Séférian, Sarah Berthet, and James C. Orr
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.22541/essoar.175308893.36793607/v1, https://doi.org/10.22541/essoar.175308893.36793607/v1, 2025
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Estimates of ocean CO2 uptake based on atmospheric and oceanic observations typically rely on monthly averages, except for wind speed. Thus they neglect effects of shorter-term events such as storms, which are included in models. Here we account for the effect of this shorter-term variability on ocean carbon uptake and find that it is reduced, mainly because storms lower atmospheric pressure. This refinement closes the gap between data-based and model-based estimates by 25 %.
Travis Mellett, Justine B. Albers, Alyson E. Santoro, Pascal Salaun, Joseph Resing, Wenhao Wang, Alastair J. M. Lough, Alessandro Tagliabue, Maeve Lohan, Randelle M. Bundy, and Kristen N. Buck
Biogeosciences, 22, 8013–8030, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-8013-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-8013-2025, 2025
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Hydrothermal plumes of iron (Fe) have been observed to persist in the deep ocean, but the exact mechanisms that contribute to the long-range transport of Fe are not well defined. We collected plume waters from three different vent systems along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and monitored the temporal evolution of the physical and chemical forms of iron and its interaction with organic matter over time to learn about the mechanisms that control its dispersion.
Rutger Marquart, Alberto Alberello, Alfred Bogaers, Francesca De Santi, and Marcello Vichi
Geosci. Model Dev., 18, 10053–10076, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-10053-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-18-10053-2025, 2025
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This study developed a kilometre-scale sea-ice model in OpenFOAM that couples dynamic and thermodynamic processes for two types of ice, solid-like ice floes and fluid-like grease ice, under wave forcing. This model can help to improve data input for large-scale sea-ice models. Results show a linear relationship between the proportion of ice floes in the field and the overall viscosity. Additionally, we found that viscosity responds nonlinearly to the inclusion of thermodynamic sea-ice growth.
Nicolas Metzl, Claire Lo Monaco, Aline Tribollet, Jean-François Ternon, Frédéric Chevallier, and Marion Gehlen
Biogeosciences, 22, 7187–7204, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-7187-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-7187-2025, 2025
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In the Mozambique Channel, observed acceleration of the ocean acidification in the recent decades is mainly driven by anthropogenic CO2 uptake. In this region the aragonite saturation state reached 3.2 in 2025 and could be as low as 3 in the next 10 years with potential impact on marine ecosystem including corals reefs areas.
Lisa Di Matteo, Fabio Benedetti, Sakina-Dorothée Ayata, and Olivier Aumont
Biogeosciences, 22, 7233–7268, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-7233-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-7233-2025, 2025
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Mesozooplankton gather small current-drifting animals. They are very diverse and play key roles in the functioning of marine ecosystem and carbon cycle, especially through the production of rapidly sinking particles. Usually represented as one compartment, here we add three feeding strategies in an ocean biogeochemical model and investigate their impact on carbon cycle at global scale. We find distinct distributions between mesozooplankton types and diverse contributions to carbon export.
Germain Bénard, Marion Gehlen, and Mathieu Vrac
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-4680, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-4680, 2025
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Climate change is transforming ocean ecosystem dynamics. We used causality methods to study how the relationships between ocean physics and biogeochemistry will change in the North Atlantic over the next century. By analyzing five different climate models, we discovered that environmental drivers' influence on ocean productivity evolves in complex ways under global warming. One environmental driver can become of major importance while others can become irrelevant.
Pierre Friedlingstein, Michael O'Sullivan, Matthew W. Jones, Robbie M. Andrew, Dorothee C. E. Bakker, Judith Hauck, Peter Landschützer, Corinne Le Quéré, Hongmei Li, Ingrid T. Luijkx, Glen P. Peters, Wouter Peters, Julia Pongratz, Clemens Schwingshackl, Stephen Sitch, Josep G. Canadell, Philippe Ciais, Kjetil Aas, Simone R. Alin, Peter Anthoni, Leticia Barbero, Nicholas R. Bates, Nicolas Bellouin, Alice Benoit-Cattin, Carla F. Berghoff, Raffaele Bernardello, Laurent Bopp, Ida B. M. Brasika, Matthew A. Chamberlain, Naveen Chandra, Frédéric Chevallier, Louise P. Chini, Nathan O. Collier, Thomas H. Colligan, Margot Cronin, Laique Djeutchouang, Xinyu Dou, Matt P. Enright, Kazutaka Enyo, Michael Erb, Wiley Evans, Richard A. Feely, Liang Feng, Daniel J. Ford, Adrianna Foster, Filippa Fransner, Thomas Gasser, Marion Gehlen, Thanos Gkritzalis, Jefferson Goncalves De Souza, Giacomo Grassi, Luke Gregor, Nicolas Gruber, Bertrand Guenet, Özgür Gürses, Kirsty Harrington, Ian Harris, Jens Heinke, George C. Hurtt, Yosuke Iida, Tatiana Ilyina, Akihiko Ito, Andrew R. Jacobson, Atul K. Jain, Tereza Jarníková, Annika Jersild, Fei Jiang, Steve D. Jones, Etsushi Kato, Ralph F. Keeling, Kees Klein Goldewijk, Jürgen Knauer, Yawen Kong, Jan Ivar Korsbakken, Charles Koven, Taro Kunimitsu, Xin Lan, Junjie Liu, Zhiqiang Liu, Zhu Liu, Claire Lo Monaco, Lei Ma, Gregg Marland, Patrick C. McGuire, Galen A. McKinley, Joe Melton, Natalie Monacci, Erwan Monier, Eric J. Morgan, David R. Munro, Jens D. Müller, Shin-Ichiro Nakaoka, Lorna R. Nayagam, Yosuke Niwa, Tobias Nutzel, Are Olsen, Abdirahman M. Omar, Naiqing Pan, Sudhanshu Pandey, Denis Pierrot, Zhangcai Qin, Pierre A. G. Regnier, Gregor Rehder, Laure Resplandy, Alizée Roobaert, Thais M. Rosan, Christian Rödenbeck, Jörg Schwinger, Ingunn Skjelvan, T. Luke Smallman, Victoria Spada, Mohanan G. Sreeush, Qing Sun, Adrienne J. Sutton, Colm Sweeney, Didier Swingedouw, Roland Séférian, Shintaro Takao, Hiroaki Tatebe, Hanqin Tian, Xiangjun Tian, Bronte Tilbrook, Hiroyuki Tsujino, Francesco Tubiello, Erik van Ooijen, Guido van der Werf, Sebastiaan J. van de Velde, Anthony Walker, Rik Wanninkhof, Xiaojuan Yang, Wenping Yuan, Xu Yue, and Jiye Zeng
Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2025-659, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2025-659, 2025
Revised manuscript accepted for ESSD
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The Global Carbon Budget 2025 describes the methodology, main results, and datasets used to quantify the anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and their partitioning among the atmosphere, land ecosystems, and the ocean over the historical period (1750–2025). These living datasets are updated every year to provide the highest transparency and traceability in the reporting of CO2, the key driver of climate change.
Quentin Hyvernat, Alexandre Mignot, Elodie Gutknecht, Giovanni Ruggiero, Coralie Perruche, Guillaume Samson, Raphaëlle Sauzède, Olivier Aumont, Hervé Claustre, and Fabrizio D'Ortenzio
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-4369, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-4369, 2025
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We introduce an iterative Importance Sampling (iIS) framework to optimize the PISCES model using BGC-Argo data. Using these data, 20 metrics are applied to better constrain parameter values. Three parameter selection strategies are compared: 29 main effects parameters, 66 parameters including interaction effects, and all 95 parameters. All yield statistically indistinguishable but significant skill gains, reducing NRMSE by 54–56% in median across assimilated metrics in the productive layer.
Pearse J. Buchanan, Juan J. Pierella Karlusich, Robyn E. Tuerena, Roxana Shafiee, E. Malcolm S. Woodward, Chris Bowler, and Alessandro Tagliabue
Biogeosciences, 22, 4865–4883, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-4865-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-4865-2025, 2025
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Ammonium is a form of nitrogen that may become more important for growth of marine primary producers (i.e., phytoplankton) in the future. Because some phytoplankton taxa have a greater affinity for ammonium than others, the relative increase in ammonium could cause shifts in community composition. We quantify ammonium enrichment, identify its drivers and isolate the possible effect on phytoplankton community composition under a high-emissions scenario.
Germain Bénard, Marion Gehlen, and Mathieu Vrac
Earth Syst. Dynam., 16, 1085–1102, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-16-1085-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-16-1085-2025, 2025
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We introduce a novel approach to compare Earth system model output using a causality-based approach. The analysis of interactions between atmospheric, oceanic and biogeochemical variables in the North Atlantic subpolar gyre highlights the dynamics of each model. This method reveals potential underlying causes of model differences, offering a tool for enhanced model evaluation and improved understanding of complex Earth system dynamics under past and future climates.
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.
Pierre Friedlingstein, Michael O'Sullivan, Matthew W. Jones, Robbie M. Andrew, Judith Hauck, Peter Landschützer, Corinne Le Quéré, Hongmei Li, Ingrid T. Luijkx, Are Olsen, Glen P. Peters, Wouter Peters, Julia Pongratz, Clemens Schwingshackl, Stephen Sitch, Josep G. Canadell, Philippe Ciais, Robert B. Jackson, Simone R. Alin, Almut Arneth, Vivek Arora, Nicholas R. Bates, Meike Becker, Nicolas Bellouin, Carla F. Berghoff, Henry C. Bittig, Laurent Bopp, Patricia Cadule, Katie Campbell, Matthew A. Chamberlain, Naveen Chandra, Frédéric Chevallier, Louise P. Chini, Thomas Colligan, Jeanne Decayeux, Laique M. Djeutchouang, Xinyu Dou, Carolina Duran Rojas, Kazutaka Enyo, Wiley Evans, Amanda R. Fay, Richard A. Feely, Daniel J. Ford, Adrianna Foster, Thomas Gasser, Marion Gehlen, Thanos Gkritzalis, Giacomo Grassi, Luke Gregor, Nicolas Gruber, Özgür Gürses, Ian Harris, Matthew Hefner, Jens Heinke, George C. Hurtt, Yosuke Iida, Tatiana Ilyina, Andrew R. Jacobson, Atul K. Jain, Tereza Jarníková, Annika Jersild, Fei Jiang, Zhe Jin, Etsushi Kato, Ralph F. Keeling, Kees Klein Goldewijk, Jürgen Knauer, Jan Ivar Korsbakken, Xin Lan, Siv K. Lauvset, Nathalie Lefèvre, Zhu Liu, Junjie Liu, Lei Ma, Shamil Maksyutov, Gregg Marland, Nicolas Mayot, Patrick C. McGuire, Nicolas Metzl, Natalie M. Monacci, Eric J. Morgan, Shin-Ichiro Nakaoka, Craig Neill, Yosuke Niwa, Tobias Nützel, Lea Olivier, Tsuneo Ono, Paul I. Palmer, Denis Pierrot, Zhangcai Qin, Laure Resplandy, Alizée Roobaert, Thais M. Rosan, Christian Rödenbeck, Jörg Schwinger, T. Luke Smallman, Stephen M. Smith, Reinel Sospedra-Alfonso, Tobias Steinhoff, Qing Sun, Adrienne J. Sutton, Roland Séférian, Shintaro Takao, Hiroaki Tatebe, Hanqin Tian, Bronte Tilbrook, Olivier Torres, Etienne Tourigny, Hiroyuki Tsujino, Francesco Tubiello, Guido van der Werf, Rik Wanninkhof, Xuhui Wang, Dongxu Yang, Xiaojuan Yang, Zhen Yu, Wenping Yuan, Xu Yue, Sönke Zaehle, Ning Zeng, and Jiye Zeng
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 17, 965–1039, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-965-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-965-2025, 2025
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The Global Carbon Budget 2024 describes the methodology, main results, and datasets used to quantify the anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and their partitioning among the atmosphere, land ecosystems, and the ocean over the historical period (1750–2024). These living datasets are updated every year to provide the highest transparency and traceability in the reporting of CO2, the key driver of climate change.
Colleen L. Hoffman, Patrick J. Monreal, Justine B. Albers, Alastair J. M. Lough, Alyson E. Santoro, Travis Mellett, Kristen N. Buck, Alessandro Tagliabue, Maeve C. Lohan, Joseph A. Resing, and Randelle M. Bundy
Biogeosciences, 21, 5233–5246, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-5233-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-5233-2024, 2024
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Hydrothermally derived iron can be transported kilometers away from deep-sea vents, representing a significant flux of vital micronutrients to the ocean. However, the mechanisms that support the stabilization of dissolved iron remain elusive. Using electrochemical, spectrometry, and genomic methods, we demonstrated that strong ligands exert an important control on iron in plumes, and high-affinity iron-binding siderophores were identified in several hydrothermal plume samples for the first time.
Karina von Schuckmann, Lorena Moreira, Mathilde Cancet, Flora Gues, Emmanuelle Autret, Ali Aydogdu, Lluis Castrillo, Daniele Ciani, Andrea Cipollone, Emanuela Clementi, Gianpiero Cossarini, Alvaro de Pascual-Collar, Vincenzo De Toma, Marion Gehlen, Rianne Giesen, Marie Drevillon, Claudia Fanelli, Kevin Hodges, Simon Jandt-Scheelke, Eric Jansen, Melanie Juza, Ioanna Karagali, Priidik Lagemaa, Vidar Lien, Leonardo Lima, Vladyslav Lyubartsev, Ilja Maljutenko, Simona Masina, Ronan McAdam, Pietro Miraglio, Helen Morrison, Tabea Rebekka Panteleit, Andrea Pisano, Marie-Isabelle Pujol, Urmas Raudsepp, Roshin Raj, Ad Stoffelen, Simon Van Gennip, Pierre Veillard, and Chunxue Yang
State Planet, 4-osr8, 2, https://doi.org/10.5194/sp-4-osr8-2-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/sp-4-osr8-2-2024, 2024
Karina von Schuckmann, Lorena Moreira, Mathilde Cancet, Flora Gues, Emmanuelle Autret, Jonathan Baker, Clément Bricaud, Romain Bourdalle-Badie, Lluis Castrillo, Lijing Cheng, Frederic Chevallier, Daniele Ciani, Alvaro de Pascual-Collar, Vincenzo De Toma, Marie Drevillon, Claudia Fanelli, Gilles Garric, Marion Gehlen, Rianne Giesen, Kevin Hodges, Doroteaciro Iovino, Simon Jandt-Scheelke, Eric Jansen, Melanie Juza, Ioanna Karagali, Thomas Lavergne, Simona Masina, Ronan McAdam, Audrey Minière, Helen Morrison, Tabea Rebekka Panteleit, Andrea Pisano, Marie-Isabelle Pujol, Ad Stoffelen, Sulian Thual, Simon Van Gennip, Pierre Veillard, Chunxue Yang, and Hao Zuo
State Planet, 4-osr8, 1, https://doi.org/10.5194/sp-4-osr8-1-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/sp-4-osr8-1-2024, 2024
Nicolas Metzl, Claire Lo Monaco, Coraline Leseurre, Céline Ridame, Gilles Reverdin, Thi Tuyet Trang Chau, Frédéric Chevallier, and Marion Gehlen
Ocean Sci., 20, 725–758, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-20-725-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-20-725-2024, 2024
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In the southern Indian Ocean, south of the polar front, an observed increase of sea surface fCO2 and a decrease of pH over 1985–2021 are mainly driven by anthropogenic CO2 uptake, but in the last decade (2010–2020) fCO2 and pH were stable in summer, highlighting the competitive balance between anthropogenic CO2 and primary production. In the water column the increase of anthropogenic CO2 concentrations leads to migration of the aragonite saturation state from 600 m in 1985 up to 400 m in 2021.
Ashleigh Womack, Alberto Alberello, Marc de Vos, Alessandro Toffoli, Robyn Verrinder, and Marcello Vichi
The Cryosphere, 18, 205–229, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-205-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-205-2024, 2024
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Synoptic events have a significant influence on the evolution of Antarctic sea ice. Our current understanding of the interactions between cyclones and sea ice remains limited. Using two ensembles of buoys, deployed in the north-eastern Weddell Sea region during winter and spring of 2019, we show how the evolution and spatial pattern of sea ice drift and deformation in the Antarctic marginal ice zone were affected by the balance between atmospheric and oceanic forcing and the local ice.
Thi-Tuyet-Trang Chau, Marion Gehlen, Nicolas Metzl, and Frédéric Chevallier
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 16, 121–160, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-16-121-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-16-121-2024, 2024
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CMEMS-LSCE leads as the first global observation-based reconstructions of six carbonate system variables for the years 1985–2021 at monthly and 0.25° resolutions. The high-resolution reconstructions outperform their 1° counterpart in reproducing horizontal and temporal gradients of observations over various oceanic regions to nearshore time series stations. New datasets can be exploited in numerous studies, including monitoring changes in ocean carbon uptake and ocean acidification.
Alizée Dale, Marion Gehlen, Douglas W. R. Wallace, Germain Bénard, Christian Éthé, and Elena Alekseenko
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2538, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2023-2538, 2023
Preprint archived
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Diatom, which is at the base of a productive food chain that supports valuable fisheries, dominates the total primary production of the Labrador Sea (LS). The synthesis of biogenic silica frustules makes them peculiar among phytoplankton but also dependent on dissolved silicate (DSi). Regular oceanographic surveys show declining DSi concentrations since the mid-1990s. With a model-based approach, we show that weakening deep winter convection was the proximate cause of DSi decline in the LS.
Christoph Heinze, Thorsten Blenckner, Peter Brown, Friederike Fröb, Anne Morée, Adrian L. New, Cara Nissen, Stefanie Rynders, Isabel Seguro, Yevgeny Aksenov, Yuri Artioli, Timothée Bourgeois, Friedrich Burger, Jonathan Buzan, B. B. Cael, Veli Çağlar Yumruktepe, Melissa Chierici, Christopher Danek, Ulf Dieckmann, Agneta Fransson, Thomas Frölicher, Giovanni Galli, Marion Gehlen, Aridane G. González, Melchor Gonzalez-Davila, Nicolas Gruber, Örjan Gustafsson, Judith Hauck, Mikko Heino, Stephanie Henson, Jenny Hieronymus, I. Emma Huertas, Fatma Jebri, Aurich Jeltsch-Thömmes, Fortunat Joos, Jaideep Joshi, Stephen Kelly, Nandini Menon, Precious Mongwe, Laurent Oziel, Sólveig Ólafsdottir, Julien Palmieri, Fiz F. Pérez, Rajamohanan Pillai Ranith, Juliano Ramanantsoa, Tilla Roy, Dagmara Rusiecka, J. Magdalena Santana Casiano, Yeray Santana-Falcón, Jörg Schwinger, Roland Séférian, Miriam Seifert, Anna Shchiptsova, Bablu Sinha, Christopher Somes, Reiner Steinfeldt, Dandan Tao, Jerry Tjiputra, Adam Ulfsbo, Christoph Völker, Tsuyoshi Wakamatsu, and Ying Ye
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2023-182, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2023-182, 2023
Revised manuscript not accepted
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For assessing the consequences of human-induced climate change for the marine realm, it is necessary to not only look at gradual changes but also at abrupt changes of environmental conditions. We summarise abrupt changes in ocean warming, acidification, and oxygen concentration as the key environmental factors for ecosystems. Taking these abrupt changes into account requires greenhouse gas emissions to be reduced to a larger extent than previously thought to limit respective damage.
Sarah Berthet, Julien Jouanno, Roland Séférian, Marion Gehlen, and William Llovel
Earth Syst. Dynam., 14, 399–412, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-14-399-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-14-399-2023, 2023
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Phytoplankton absorbs the solar radiation entering the ocean surface and contributes to keeping the associated energy in surface waters. This natural effect is either not represented in the ocean component of climate models or its representation is simplified. An incomplete representation of this biophysical interaction affects the way climate models simulate ocean warming, which leads to uncertainties in projections of oceanic emissions of an important greenhouse gas (nitrous oxide).
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.
Corentin Clerc, Laurent Bopp, Fabio Benedetti, Meike Vogt, and Olivier Aumont
Biogeosciences, 20, 869–895, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-869-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-869-2023, 2023
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Gelatinous zooplankton play a key role in the ocean carbon cycle. In particular, pelagic tunicates, which feed on a wide size range of prey, produce rapidly sinking detritus. Thus, they efficiently transfer carbon from the surface to the depths. Consequently, we added these organisms to a marine biogeochemical model (PISCES-v2) and evaluated their impact on the global carbon cycle. We found that they contribute significantly to carbon export and that this contribution increases with depth.
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.
Pierre Friedlingstein, Michael O'Sullivan, Matthew W. Jones, Robbie M. Andrew, Luke Gregor, Judith Hauck, Corinne Le Quéré, Ingrid T. Luijkx, Are Olsen, Glen P. Peters, Wouter Peters, Julia Pongratz, Clemens Schwingshackl, Stephen Sitch, Josep G. Canadell, Philippe Ciais, Robert B. Jackson, Simone R. Alin, Ramdane Alkama, Almut Arneth, Vivek K. Arora, Nicholas R. Bates, Meike Becker, Nicolas Bellouin, Henry C. Bittig, Laurent Bopp, Frédéric Chevallier, Louise P. Chini, Margot Cronin, Wiley Evans, Stefanie Falk, Richard A. Feely, Thomas Gasser, Marion Gehlen, Thanos Gkritzalis, Lucas Gloege, Giacomo Grassi, Nicolas Gruber, Özgür Gürses, Ian Harris, Matthew Hefner, Richard A. Houghton, George C. Hurtt, Yosuke Iida, Tatiana Ilyina, Atul K. Jain, Annika Jersild, Koji Kadono, Etsushi Kato, Daniel Kennedy, Kees Klein Goldewijk, Jürgen Knauer, Jan Ivar Korsbakken, Peter Landschützer, Nathalie Lefèvre, Keith Lindsay, Junjie Liu, Zhu Liu, Gregg Marland, Nicolas Mayot, Matthew J. McGrath, Nicolas Metzl, Natalie M. Monacci, David R. Munro, Shin-Ichiro Nakaoka, Yosuke Niwa, Kevin O'Brien, Tsuneo Ono, Paul I. Palmer, Naiqing Pan, Denis Pierrot, Katie Pocock, Benjamin Poulter, Laure Resplandy, Eddy Robertson, Christian Rödenbeck, Carmen Rodriguez, Thais M. Rosan, Jörg Schwinger, Roland Séférian, Jamie D. Shutler, Ingunn Skjelvan, Tobias Steinhoff, Qing Sun, Adrienne J. Sutton, Colm Sweeney, Shintaro Takao, Toste Tanhua, Pieter P. Tans, Xiangjun Tian, Hanqin Tian, Bronte Tilbrook, Hiroyuki Tsujino, Francesco Tubiello, Guido R. van der Werf, Anthony P. Walker, Rik Wanninkhof, Chris Whitehead, Anna Willstrand Wranne, Rebecca Wright, Wenping Yuan, Chao Yue, Xu Yue, Sönke Zaehle, Jiye Zeng, and Bo Zheng
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 14, 4811–4900, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-4811-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-14-4811-2022, 2022
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The Global Carbon Budget 2022 describes the datasets and methodology used to quantify the anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and their partitioning among the atmosphere, the land ecosystems, and the ocean. These living datasets are updated every year to provide the highest transparency and traceability in the reporting of CO2, the key driver of climate change.
Marcello Vichi
The Cryosphere, 16, 4087–4106, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4087-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4087-2022, 2022
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The marginal ice zone (MIZ) in the Antarctic is the largest in the world ocean. Antarctic sea ice has large year-to-year changes, and the MIZ represents its most variable component. Processes typical of the MIZ have also been observed in fully ice-covered ocean and are not captured by existing diagnostics. A new statistical method has been shown to address previous limitations in assessing the seasonal cycle of MIZ extent and to provide a probability map of sea ice state in the Southern Ocean.
Laurent Bopp, Olivier Aumont, Lester Kwiatkowski, Corentin Clerc, Léonard Dupont, Christian Ethé, Thomas Gorgues, Roland Séférian, and Alessandro Tagliabue
Biogeosciences, 19, 4267–4285, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-4267-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-4267-2022, 2022
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The impact of anthropogenic climate change on the biological production of phytoplankton in the ocean is a cause for concern because its evolution could affect the response of marine ecosystems to climate change. Here, we identify biological N fixation and its response to future climate change as a key process in shaping the future evolution of marine phytoplankton production. Our results show that further study of how this nitrogen fixation responds to environmental change is essential.
Laique M. Djeutchouang, Nicolette Chang, Luke Gregor, Marcello Vichi, and Pedro M. S. Monteiro
Biogeosciences, 19, 4171–4195, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-4171-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-4171-2022, 2022
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Based on observing system simulation experiments using a mesoscale-resolving model, we found that to significantly improve uncertainties and biases in carbon dioxide (CO2) mapping in the Southern Ocean, it is essential to resolve the seasonal cycle (SC) of the meridional gradient of CO2 through high frequency (at least daily) observations that also span the region's meridional axis. We also showed that the estimated SC anomaly and mean annual CO2 are highly sensitive to seasonal sampling biases.
Sebastian Skatulla, Riesna R. Audh, Andrea Cook, Ehlke Hepworth, Siobhan Johnson, Doru C. Lupascu, Keith MacHutchon, Rutger Marquart, Tommy Mielke, Emmanuel Omatuku, Felix Paul, Tokoloho Rampai, Jörg Schröder, Carina Schwarz, and Marcello Vichi
The Cryosphere, 16, 2899–2925, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2899-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-2899-2022, 2022
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First-year sea ice has been sampled at the advancing outer edge of the Antarctic marginal ice zone (MIZ) along the Good Hope Line. Ice cores were extracted from five pancake ice floes and subsequently analysed for their physical and mechanical properties. Of particular interest was elucidating the transition of ice composition within the MIZ in terms of differences in mechanical stiffness and strength properties as linked to physical and textural characteristics at early-stage ice formation.
Rebecca Chmiel, Nathan Lanning, Allison Laubach, Jong-Mi Lee, Jessica Fitzsimmons, Mariko Hatta, William Jenkins, Phoebe Lam, Matthew McIlvin, Alessandro Tagliabue, and Mak Saito
Biogeosciences, 19, 2365–2395, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-2365-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-2365-2022, 2022
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Dissolved cobalt is present in trace amounts in seawater and is a necessary nutrient for marine microbes. On a transect from the Alaskan coast to Tahiti, we measured seawater concentrations of dissolved cobalt. Here, we describe several interesting features of the Pacific cobalt cycle including cobalt sources along the Alaskan coast and Hawaiian vents, deep-ocean particle formation, cobalt activity in low-oxygen regions, and how our samples compare to a global biogeochemical model’s predictions.
Wayne de Jager and Marcello Vichi
The Cryosphere, 16, 925–940, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-925-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-925-2022, 2022
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Ice motion can be used to better understand how weather and climate change affect the ice. Antarctic sea ice extent has shown large variability over the observed period, and dynamical features may also have changed. Our method allows for the quantification of rotational motion caused by wind and how this may have changed with time. Cyclonic motion dominates the Atlantic sector, particularly from 2015 onwards, while anticyclonic motion has remained comparatively small and unchanged.
Nicolas Metzl, Claire Lo Monaco, Coraline Leseurre, Céline Ridame, Jonathan Fin, Claude Mignon, Marion Gehlen, and Thi Tuyet Trang Chau
Biogeosciences, 19, 1451–1468, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1451-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1451-2022, 2022
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During an oceanographic cruise conducted in January 2020 in the south-western Indian Ocean, we observed very low CO2 concentrations associated with a strong phytoplankton bloom that occurred south-east of Madagascar. This biological event led to a strong regional CO2 ocean sink not previously observed.
Martí Galí, Marcus Falls, Hervé Claustre, Olivier Aumont, and Raffaele Bernardello
Biogeosciences, 19, 1245–1275, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1245-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1245-2022, 2022
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Part of the organic matter produced by plankton in the upper ocean is exported to the deep ocean. This process, known as the biological carbon pump, is key for the regulation of atmospheric carbon dioxide and global climate. However, the dynamics of organic particles below the upper ocean layer are not well understood. Here we compared the measurements acquired by autonomous robots in the top 1000 m of the ocean to a numerical model, which can help improve future climate projections.
Thi Tuyet Trang Chau, Marion Gehlen, and Frédéric Chevallier
Biogeosciences, 19, 1087–1109, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1087-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-1087-2022, 2022
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Air–sea CO2 fluxes and associated uncertainty over the open ocean to coastal shelves are estimated with a new ensemble-based reconstruction of pCO2 trained on observation-based data. The regional distribution and seasonality of CO2 sources and sinks are consistent with those suggested in previous studies as well as mechanisms discussed therein. The ensemble-based uncertainty field allows identifying critical regions where improvements in pCO2 and air–sea CO2 flux estimates should be a priority.
Amanda R. Fay, Luke Gregor, Peter Landschützer, Galen A. McKinley, Nicolas Gruber, Marion Gehlen, Yosuke Iida, Goulven G. Laruelle, Christian Rödenbeck, Alizée Roobaert, and Jiye Zeng
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 13, 4693–4710, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-4693-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-4693-2021, 2021
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The movement of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to the ocean is estimated using surface ocean carbon (pCO2) measurements and an equation including variables such as temperature and wind speed; the choices of these variables lead to uncertainties. We introduce the SeaFlux ensemble which provides carbon flux maps calculated in a consistent manner, thus reducing uncertainty by using common choices for wind speed and a set definition of "global" coverage.
Anna Denvil-Sommer, Marion Gehlen, and Mathieu Vrac
Ocean Sci., 17, 1011–1030, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-17-1011-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-17-1011-2021, 2021
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In this work we explored design options for a future Atlantic-scale observational network enabling the release of carbon system estimates by combining data streams from various platforms. We used outputs of a physical–biogeochemical global ocean model at sites of real-world observations to reconstruct surface ocean pCO2 by applying a non-linear feed-forward neural network. The results provide important information for future BGC-Argo deployment, i.e. important regions and the number of floats.
Julien Jouanno, Rachid Benshila, Léo Berline, Antonin Soulié, Marie-Hélène Radenac, Guillaume Morvan, Frédéric Diaz, Julio Sheinbaum, Cristele Chevalier, Thierry Thibaut, Thomas Changeux, Frédéric Menard, Sarah Berthet, Olivier Aumont, Christian Ethé, Pierre Nabat, and Marc Mallet
Geosci. Model Dev., 14, 4069–4086, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-14-4069-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-14-4069-2021, 2021
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The tropical Atlantic has been facing a massive proliferation of Sargassum since 2011, with severe environmental and socioeconomic impacts. We developed a modeling framework based on the NEMO ocean model, which integrates transport by currents and waves, and physiology of Sargassum with varying internal nutrient quota, and considers stranding at the coast. Results demonstrate the ability of the model to reproduce and forecast the seasonal cycle and large-scale distribution of Sargassum biomass.
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Short summary
We use five different versions of a biogeochemical model to show that how phytoplankton growth processes are represented strongly shapes projections of future ocean productivity and carbon export. Added model complexity does not have a uniform global effect as some new processes mainly influence specific ocean regions, while others, such as an additional small phytoplankton type, lead to large intramodel differences in future trends and latitudinal patterns of productivity and carbon export.
We use five different versions of a biogeochemical model to show that how phytoplankton growth...
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