Eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north Atlantic Ocean

In steady state, the export of photosynthetically fixed organic matter to the deep ocean has to be balanced by an upward flux of nutrients into the euphotic zone1. Indirect geochemical estimates2 of the nutrient supply to surface waters have been substantially higher than direct biological and physi...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature
Main Authors: Oschlies, Andreas, Garcon, Veronique
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Nature Publishing Group 1998
Subjects:
Online Access:https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/8029/
https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/8029/1/Oschlies_Garcon.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1038/28373
id ftoceanrep:oai:oceanrep.geomar.de:8029
record_format openpolar
spelling ftoceanrep:oai:oceanrep.geomar.de:8029 2023-05-15T17:30:39+02:00 Eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north Atlantic Ocean Oschlies, Andreas Garcon, Veronique 1998 text https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/8029/ https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/8029/1/Oschlies_Garcon.pdf https://doi.org/10.1038/28373 en eng Nature Publishing Group https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/8029/1/Oschlies_Garcon.pdf Oschlies, A. and Garcon, V. (1998) Eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north Atlantic Ocean. Nature, 394 . pp. 266-269. DOI 10.1038/28373 <https://doi.org/10.1038/28373>. doi:10.1038/28373 info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess Article PeerReviewed 1998 ftoceanrep https://doi.org/10.1038/28373 2023-04-07T14:56:00Z In steady state, the export of photosynthetically fixed organic matter to the deep ocean has to be balanced by an upward flux of nutrients into the euphotic zone1. Indirect geochemical estimates2 of the nutrient supply to surface waters have been substantially higher than direct biological and physical measurements3, particularly in subtropical regions. A possible explanation for the apparent discrepancy is that the sampling strategy of the direct measurements has under-represented episodic nutrient injections forced by mesoscale eddy dynamics, whereas geochemical tracer budgets integrate fluxes over longer time and space scales. Here we investigate the eddy-induced nutrient supply by combining two methods potentially capable of delivering synoptic descriptions of the ocean's state on a basin scale. Remotely sensed sea-surface height data from the simultaneous TOPEX/Poseidon and ERS-1 satellite missions are assimilated into a numerical eddy-resolving coupled ecosystem–circulation model of the North Atlantic Ocean. Our results indicate that mesoscale eddy activity accounts for about one-third of the total flux of nitrate into the euphotic zone (taken to represent new production) in the subtropics and at mid-latitudes. This contribution is not sufficient to maintain the observed primary production in parts of the subtropical gyre, where alternative routes of nitrogen supply will have to be considered. Article in Journal/Newspaper North Atlantic OceanRep (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre für Ocean Research Kiel) Nature 394 6690 266 269
institution Open Polar
collection OceanRep (GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre für Ocean Research Kiel)
op_collection_id ftoceanrep
language English
description In steady state, the export of photosynthetically fixed organic matter to the deep ocean has to be balanced by an upward flux of nutrients into the euphotic zone1. Indirect geochemical estimates2 of the nutrient supply to surface waters have been substantially higher than direct biological and physical measurements3, particularly in subtropical regions. A possible explanation for the apparent discrepancy is that the sampling strategy of the direct measurements has under-represented episodic nutrient injections forced by mesoscale eddy dynamics, whereas geochemical tracer budgets integrate fluxes over longer time and space scales. Here we investigate the eddy-induced nutrient supply by combining two methods potentially capable of delivering synoptic descriptions of the ocean's state on a basin scale. Remotely sensed sea-surface height data from the simultaneous TOPEX/Poseidon and ERS-1 satellite missions are assimilated into a numerical eddy-resolving coupled ecosystem–circulation model of the North Atlantic Ocean. Our results indicate that mesoscale eddy activity accounts for about one-third of the total flux of nitrate into the euphotic zone (taken to represent new production) in the subtropics and at mid-latitudes. This contribution is not sufficient to maintain the observed primary production in parts of the subtropical gyre, where alternative routes of nitrogen supply will have to be considered.
format Article in Journal/Newspaper
author Oschlies, Andreas
Garcon, Veronique
spellingShingle Oschlies, Andreas
Garcon, Veronique
Eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north Atlantic Ocean
author_facet Oschlies, Andreas
Garcon, Veronique
author_sort Oschlies, Andreas
title Eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north Atlantic Ocean
title_short Eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north Atlantic Ocean
title_full Eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north Atlantic Ocean
title_fullStr Eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north Atlantic Ocean
title_full_unstemmed Eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north Atlantic Ocean
title_sort eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north atlantic ocean
publisher Nature Publishing Group
publishDate 1998
url https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/8029/
https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/8029/1/Oschlies_Garcon.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1038/28373
genre North Atlantic
genre_facet North Atlantic
op_relation https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/8029/1/Oschlies_Garcon.pdf
Oschlies, A. and Garcon, V. (1998) Eddy-induced enhancement of primary production in a model of the north Atlantic Ocean. Nature, 394 . pp. 266-269. DOI 10.1038/28373 <https://doi.org/10.1038/28373>.
doi:10.1038/28373
op_rights info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess
op_doi https://doi.org/10.1038/28373
container_title Nature
container_volume 394
container_issue 6690
container_start_page 266
op_container_end_page 269
_version_ 1766127530853531648