AI Article Synopsis
- - The availability of iron significantly influences biological productivity in ocean surface waters and impacts atmospheric carbon dioxide levels during glacial cycles.
- - In the Southern Ocean, where there's plenty of nitrate, phytoplankton growth from iron can vary based on silicic acid levels; high silicic acid in the south and low in the north can limit diatom growth.
- - Two experiments conducted in the Southern Ocean highlight iron's critical role in carbon uptake and its effect on atmospheric CO2 levels based on silicic acid concentrations.
Article Abstract
The availability of iron is known to exert a controlling influence on biological productivity in surface waters over large areas of the ocean and may have been an important factor in the variation of the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide over glacial cycles. The effect of iron in the Southern Ocean is particularly important because of its large area and abundant nitrate, yet iron-enhanced growth of phytoplankton may be differentially expressed between waters with high silicic acid in the south and low silicic acid in the north, where diatom growth may be limited by both silicic acid and iron. Two mesoscale experiments, designed to investigate the effects of iron enrichment in regions with high and low concentrations of silicic acid, were performed in the Southern Ocean. These experiments demonstrate iron's pivotal role in controlling carbon uptake and regulating atmospheric partial pressure of carbon dioxide.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.1089778 | DOI Listing |
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