Sinking rates and ballast composition of particles in the Atlantic Ocean: implications for the organic carbon fluxes to the deep ocean
The flux of materials to the deep sea is dominated by larger, organic-rich particles with sinking rates varying between a few meters and several hundred meters per day. Mineral ballast may regulate the transfer of organic matter and other components by determining the sinking rates, e.g. via particl...
Published in: | Biogeosciences |
---|---|
Main Authors: | , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2009
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-6-85-2009 https://noa.gwlb.de/receive/cop_mods_00030753 https://noa.gwlb.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/cop_derivate_00030707/bg-6-85-2009.pdf https://bg.copernicus.org/articles/6/85/2009/bg-6-85-2009.pdf |
id |
ftnonlinearchiv:oai:noa.gwlb.de:cop_mods_00030753 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftnonlinearchiv:oai:noa.gwlb.de:cop_mods_00030753 2023-05-15T18:25:56+02:00 Sinking rates and ballast composition of particles in the Atlantic Ocean: implications for the organic carbon fluxes to the deep ocean Fischer, G. Karakaş, G. 2009-01 electronic https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-6-85-2009 https://noa.gwlb.de/receive/cop_mods_00030753 https://noa.gwlb.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/cop_derivate_00030707/bg-6-85-2009.pdf https://bg.copernicus.org/articles/6/85/2009/bg-6-85-2009.pdf eng eng Copernicus Publications Biogeosciences -- http://www.bibliothek.uni-regensburg.de/ezeit/?2158181 -- http://www.copernicus.org/EGU/bg/bg.html -- 1726-4189 https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-6-85-2009 https://noa.gwlb.de/receive/cop_mods_00030753 https://noa.gwlb.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/cop_derivate_00030707/bg-6-85-2009.pdf https://bg.copernicus.org/articles/6/85/2009/bg-6-85-2009.pdf uneingeschränkt info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article Verlagsveröffentlichung article Text doc-type:article 2009 ftnonlinearchiv https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-6-85-2009 2022-02-08T22:47:04Z The flux of materials to the deep sea is dominated by larger, organic-rich particles with sinking rates varying between a few meters and several hundred meters per day. Mineral ballast may regulate the transfer of organic matter and other components by determining the sinking rates, e.g. via particle density. We calculated particle sinking rates from mass flux patterns and alkenone measurements applying the results of sediment trap experiments from the Atlantic Ocean. We have indication for higher particle sinking rates in carbonate-dominated production systems when considering both regional and seasonal data. During a summer coccolithophorid bloom in the Cape Blanc coastal upwelling off Mauritania, particle sinking rates reached almost 570 m per day, most probably due the fast sedimentation of densely packed zooplankton fecal pellets, which transport high amounts of organic carbon associated with coccoliths to the deep ocean despite rather low production. During the recurring winter-spring blooms off NW Africa and in opal-rich production systems of the Southern Ocean, sinking rates of larger particles, most probably diatom aggregates, showed a tendency to lower values. However, there is no straightforward relationship between carbonate content and particle sinking rates. This could be due to the unknown composition of carbonate and/or the influence of particle size and shape on sinking rates. It also remains noticeable that the highest sinking rates occurred in dust-rich ocean regions off NW Africa, but this issue deserves further detailed field and laboratory investigations. We obtained increasing sinking rates with depth. By using a seven-compartment biogeochemical model, it was shown that the deep ocean organic carbon flux at a mesotrophic sediment trap site off Cape Blanc can be captured fairly well using seasonal variable particle sinking rates. Our model provides a total organic carbon flux of 0.29 Tg per year down to 3000 m off the NW African upwelling region between 5 and 35° N. Simple parameterisations of remineralisation and sinking rates in such models, however, limit their capability in reproducing the flux variation in the water column. Article in Journal/Newspaper Southern Ocean Niedersächsisches Online-Archiv NOA Southern Ocean Biogeosciences 6 1 85 102 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Niedersächsisches Online-Archiv NOA |
op_collection_id |
ftnonlinearchiv |
language |
English |
topic |
article Verlagsveröffentlichung |
spellingShingle |
article Verlagsveröffentlichung Fischer, G. Karakaş, G. Sinking rates and ballast composition of particles in the Atlantic Ocean: implications for the organic carbon fluxes to the deep ocean |
topic_facet |
article Verlagsveröffentlichung |
description |
The flux of materials to the deep sea is dominated by larger, organic-rich particles with sinking rates varying between a few meters and several hundred meters per day. Mineral ballast may regulate the transfer of organic matter and other components by determining the sinking rates, e.g. via particle density. We calculated particle sinking rates from mass flux patterns and alkenone measurements applying the results of sediment trap experiments from the Atlantic Ocean. We have indication for higher particle sinking rates in carbonate-dominated production systems when considering both regional and seasonal data. During a summer coccolithophorid bloom in the Cape Blanc coastal upwelling off Mauritania, particle sinking rates reached almost 570 m per day, most probably due the fast sedimentation of densely packed zooplankton fecal pellets, which transport high amounts of organic carbon associated with coccoliths to the deep ocean despite rather low production. During the recurring winter-spring blooms off NW Africa and in opal-rich production systems of the Southern Ocean, sinking rates of larger particles, most probably diatom aggregates, showed a tendency to lower values. However, there is no straightforward relationship between carbonate content and particle sinking rates. This could be due to the unknown composition of carbonate and/or the influence of particle size and shape on sinking rates. It also remains noticeable that the highest sinking rates occurred in dust-rich ocean regions off NW Africa, but this issue deserves further detailed field and laboratory investigations. We obtained increasing sinking rates with depth. By using a seven-compartment biogeochemical model, it was shown that the deep ocean organic carbon flux at a mesotrophic sediment trap site off Cape Blanc can be captured fairly well using seasonal variable particle sinking rates. Our model provides a total organic carbon flux of 0.29 Tg per year down to 3000 m off the NW African upwelling region between 5 and 35° N. Simple parameterisations of remineralisation and sinking rates in such models, however, limit their capability in reproducing the flux variation in the water column. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Fischer, G. Karakaş, G. |
author_facet |
Fischer, G. Karakaş, G. |
author_sort |
Fischer, G. |
title |
Sinking rates and ballast composition of particles in the Atlantic Ocean: implications for the organic carbon fluxes to the deep ocean |
title_short |
Sinking rates and ballast composition of particles in the Atlantic Ocean: implications for the organic carbon fluxes to the deep ocean |
title_full |
Sinking rates and ballast composition of particles in the Atlantic Ocean: implications for the organic carbon fluxes to the deep ocean |
title_fullStr |
Sinking rates and ballast composition of particles in the Atlantic Ocean: implications for the organic carbon fluxes to the deep ocean |
title_full_unstemmed |
Sinking rates and ballast composition of particles in the Atlantic Ocean: implications for the organic carbon fluxes to the deep ocean |
title_sort |
sinking rates and ballast composition of particles in the atlantic ocean: implications for the organic carbon fluxes to the deep ocean |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2009 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-6-85-2009 https://noa.gwlb.de/receive/cop_mods_00030753 https://noa.gwlb.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/cop_derivate_00030707/bg-6-85-2009.pdf https://bg.copernicus.org/articles/6/85/2009/bg-6-85-2009.pdf |
geographic |
Southern Ocean |
geographic_facet |
Southern Ocean |
genre |
Southern Ocean |
genre_facet |
Southern Ocean |
op_relation |
Biogeosciences -- http://www.bibliothek.uni-regensburg.de/ezeit/?2158181 -- http://www.copernicus.org/EGU/bg/bg.html -- 1726-4189 https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-6-85-2009 https://noa.gwlb.de/receive/cop_mods_00030753 https://noa.gwlb.de/servlets/MCRFileNodeServlet/cop_derivate_00030707/bg-6-85-2009.pdf https://bg.copernicus.org/articles/6/85/2009/bg-6-85-2009.pdf |
op_rights |
uneingeschränkt info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-6-85-2009 |
container_title |
Biogeosciences |
container_volume |
6 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
85 |
op_container_end_page |
102 |
_version_ |
1766207676712222720 |