New research indicates that nutrient loads delivered to South American ecosystems by dust originating in Africa are far lower than suggested in previous studies.
Global Biogeochemical Cycles
Posted inResearch Spotlights
New Recognition for Major Players in the Ocean’s Silicon Cycle
Tiny, shelled protists known as Rhizaria may be responsible for up to one fifth of the total amount of silica produced by the world’s oceanic organisms.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
New Models Give Global Picture of Mercury Content in Oceans
Concentrations of methylated mercury in high latitudes show the importance of sunlight and biological activity for cycling the metal.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Anaerobic Activity Is a Big Contributor in Marine “Dead Zones”
Climate models that do not account for anaerobic microbial activity may underestimate future expansion of oxygen-depleted waters.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Sunlight Stimulates Brown Algae to Release Organic Carbon
Sargassum and other brown algae might be an underappreciated contributor of organic compounds called polyphenols to the open ocean.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Ship-Based Measurements Overestimate Southern Ocean Carbon Sink
New research suggests that combining ship- and float-based observations provides a more accurate measure of how much carbon the Southern Ocean absorbs.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Revealing the Ocean’s Rare but Prolific Carbon Export Events
New findings suggest that rare events underlie a global inverse relationship between primary production of organic carbon in the upper ocean and the fraction that is exported to the deep sea.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How the Ocean’s “Shadow Zone” Breathes
A new study uses Argo floats and an ocean circulation model to track the sources supplying pulses of oxygen to the deep North Pacific.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Pacific Carbon Uptake Accelerating Faster Than Expected
A new study suggests that shifting ocean currents drive faster carbon dioxide uptake.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Big Data Help Paint a New Picture of Trace Element Cycling
A new framework for understanding the suite of processes acting on marine particulate trace metals exemplifies how alternative analyses can maximize the information that large data sets provide.