Publication Date:
2023-05-29
Description:
Iron is an essential nutrient that regulates productivity in ~30% of the ocean. Compared with deep (〉2000 meter) hydrothermal activity at mid-ocean ridges that provide iron to the ocean's interior, shallow (〈500 meter) hydrothermal fluids are likely to influence the surface's ecosystem. However, their effect is unknown. In this work, we show that fluids emitted along the Tonga volcanic arc (South Pacific) have a substantial impact on iron concentrations in the photic layer through vertical diffusion. This enrichment stimulates biological activity, resulting in an extensive patch of chlorophyll (360,000 square kilometers). Diazotroph activity is two to eight times higher and carbon export fluxes are two to three times higher in iron-enriched waters than in adjacent unfertilized waters. Such findings reveal a previously undescribed mechanism of natural iron fertilization in the ocean that fuels regional hotspot sinks for atmospheric CO2.
Description:
Published
Description:
812-817
Description:
4A. Oceanografia e clima
Description:
6A. Geochimica per l'ambiente e geologia medica
Description:
JCR Journal
Keywords:
03.04. Chemical and biological
;
04.08. Volcanology
Repository Name:
Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)
Type:
article
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