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Title: Impact of Changes to the Atmospheric Soluble Iron Deposition Flux on Ocean Biogeochemical Cycles in the Anthropocene

Journal Article · · Global Biogeochemical Cycles
ORCiD logo [1];  [2];  [3];  [4]; ORCiD logo [5]; ORCiD logo [6]; ORCiD logo [7];  [8];  [9];  [10]; ORCiD logo [11];  [12];  [1]
  1. Department of Earth and Atmospheric Science Cornell University Ithaca NY USA
  2. Department of Earth System Science University of California Irvine CA USA
  3. Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research/Atmospheric Environmental Research Karlsruhe Institute of Technology Garmisch‐Partenkirchen Germany
  4. Department of Mechanical Engineering Colorado State University Fort Collins CO USA
  5. School of Earth and Environment University of Leeds Leeds UK
  6. Geospatial Data Solutions Center University of California Irvine CA USA
  7. Yokohama Institute for Earth Sciences JAMSTEC Yokohama Japan
  8. Department of Earth Sciences The University of Hong Kong Hong Kong
  9. National Center for Atmospheric Research Boulder CO USA
  10. Institute for Physical Geography and Ecosystem Sciences Lund University Lund Sweden
  11. Department of Atmospheric Science Colorado State University Fort Collins CO USA
  12. Atmospheric Sciences and Global Change Division Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Richland WA USA

Abstract Iron can be a growth‐limiting nutrient for phytoplankton, modifying rates of net primary production, nitrogen fixation, and carbon export ‐ highlighting the importance of new iron inputs from the atmosphere. The bioavailable iron fraction depends on the emission source and the dissolution during transport. The impacts of anthropogenic combustion and land use change on emissions from industrial, domestic, shipping, desert, and wildfire sources suggest that Northern Hemisphere soluble iron deposition has likely been enhanced between 2% and 68% over the Industrial Era. If policy and climate follow the intermediate Representative Concentration Pathway 4.5 trajectory, then results suggest that Southern Ocean (>30°S) soluble iron deposition would be enhanced between 63% and 95% by 2100. Marine net primary productivity and carbon export within the open ocean are most sensitive to changes in soluble iron deposition in the Southern Hemisphere; this is predominantly driven by fire rather than dust iron sources. Changes in iron deposition cause large perturbations to the marine nitrogen cycle, up to 70% increase in denitrification and 15% increase in nitrogen fixation, but only modestly impacts the carbon cycle and atmospheric CO 2 concentrations (1–3 ppm). Regionally, primary productivity increases due to increased iron deposition are often compensated by offsetting decreases downstream corresponding to equivalent changes in the rate of phytoplankton macronutrient uptake, particularly in the equatorial Pacific. These effects are weaker in the Southern Ocean, suggesting that changes in iron deposition in this region dominates the global carbon cycle and climate response.

Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
Grant/Contract Number:
SC0016362; SC0016539
OSTI ID:
1602595
Journal Information:
Global Biogeochemical Cycles, Journal Name: Global Biogeochemical Cycles Journal Issue: 3 Vol. 34; ISSN 0886-6236
Publisher:
American Geophysical Union (AGU)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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