Estapa Margaret L.

Last Name

Estapa

First Name

Margaret L.

Full item page

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 20 of 30

Autonomous, high-resolution observations of particle flux in the oligotrophic ocean

(Copernicus Publications on behalf of the European Geosciences Union, 2013-08-16) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Buesseler, Ken O. ; Boss, Emmanuel S. ; Gerbi, Gregory P.

Observational gaps limit our understanding of particle flux attenuation through the upper mesopelagic because available measurements (sediment traps and radiochemical tracers) have limited temporal resolution, are labor-intensive, and require ship support. Here, we conceptually evaluate an autonomous, optical proxy-based method for high-resolution observations of particle flux. We present four continuous records of particle flux collected with autonomous profiling floats in the western Sargasso Sea and the subtropical North Pacific, as well as one shorter record of depth-resolved particle flux near the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS) and Oceanic Flux Program (OFP) sites. These observations illustrate strong variability in particle flux over very short (~1-day) timescales, but at longer timescales they reflect patterns of variability previously recorded during sediment trap time series. While particle flux attenuation at BATS/OFP agreed with the canonical power-law model when observations were averaged over a month, flux attenuation was highly variable on timescales of 1–3 days. Particle fluxes at different depths were decoupled from one another and from particle concentrations and chlorophyll fluorescence in the immediately overlying surface water, consistent with horizontal advection of settling particles. We finally present an approach for calibrating this optical proxy in units of carbon flux, discuss in detail the related, inherent physical and optical assumptions, and look forward toward the requirements for the quantitative application of this method in highly time-resolved studies of particle export and flux attenuation.
Images and associated metadata of individually classified particles imaged and quantified in sediment trap gel layers collected on four research cruises conducted between 2015 and 2018

(Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). Contact: bco-dmo-data@whoi.edu, 2021-09-15) Durkin, Colleen ; Estapa, Margaret L. ; Omand, Melissa

This dataset includes Images and associated metadata of individually classified particles imaged and quantified in sediment trap gel layers collected on four research cruises conducted between 2015 and 2018 (EN572, EN581, FK170124, and RR1813). For a complete list of measurements, refer to the full dataset description in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: https://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/860725
Carbon, Nitrogen, biogenic silica, thorium-234, and mass fluxes from upper ocean sediment traps at the Porcupine Abyssal Plain Sustained Observatory (PAP-SO) site in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean during RRS Discovery cruise DY077 in April of 2017

(Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). Contact: bco-dmo-data@whoi.edu, 2019-06-26) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Buesseler, Kenneth O. ; Lampitt, Richard

Carbon, Nitrogen, biogenic silica, thorium-234, and mass fluxes from upper ocean sediment traps at the Porcupine Abyssal Plain Sustained Observatory (PAP-SO) site in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean during RRS Discovery cruise DY077 in April of 2017. For a complete list of measurements, refer to the full dataset description in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: https://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/765835
Images of particles collected in sediment traps for quantitative analysis from multiple platforms from 2016-2017

(Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). Contact: bco-dmo-data@whoi.edu, 2020-07-15) Durkin, Colleen ; Estapa, Margaret L. ; Omand, Melissa

Images of particles collected in sediment traps for quantitative analysis from multiple platforms from 2016-2017 For a complete list of measurements, refer to the full dataset description in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: https://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/749412
Carbon and nitrogen flux measurements from the Sargasso Sea from 2013-2014.

(Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). Contact: bco-dmo-data@whoi.edu, 2018-04-24) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Buesseler, Kenneth O.

Nearly-continuous, optical sediment trap proxy measurements of particle flux were obtained in the Sargasso Sea over nearly a year by a beam transmissometer mounted vertically on quasi-Lagrangian profiling floats. Fluxes measured directly with neutrally-buoyant, drifting sediment traps co-deployed with the floats during a series of five BATS cruises prior to this year-long deployment provide a calibration for the float-based optical measurements. A well-correlated, positive relationship (R2=0.66, n=15) exists between the optical flux proxy and the particulate carbon flux measured directly using NBSTs. For a complete list of measurements, refer to the supplemental document 'Field_names.pdf', and a full dataset description is included in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: http://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/728383
Sediment trap gel images of settled particles that were collected from the Sargasso Sea between 2013 and 2014.

(Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). Contact: bco-dmo-data@whoi.edu, 2018-04-24) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Buesseler, Kenneth O.

Sinking particle sizes span many orders of magnitude and the relative influence of small particles on carbon export compared to large particles has not been resolved. To determine the influence of particle size on carbon export, the flux of both small (11–64 μm) and large (>64 μm) particles in the upper mesopelagic was examined during five cruises of the Bermuda Atlantic Time Series (BATS) in the Sargasso Sea using neutrally buoyant sediment traps mounted with tubes containing polyacrylamide gel layers to preserve sizes and shapes of sinking particles. Microphotographic images of gels were collected and used to determine particle size distributions. For a complete list of measurements, refer to the supplemental document 'Field_names.pdf', and a full dataset description is included in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: http://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/728395
Float park phase data collected at depth in the Sargasso Sea from 2013-2014.

(Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). Contact: bco-dmo-data@whoi.edu, 2018-04-24) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Buesseler, Kenneth O.

Optical proxy measurements of sinking particle flux and water-column bio-optical profiles were obtained from profiling floats in the Sargasso Sea to expand the number of particle flux observations in the critical and under-sampled “twilight zone”. Particulate organic carbon flux derived from float-based optical sediment trap measurements was validated against fluxes measured directly with co-deployed, drifting neutrally-buoyant, sediment traps during a series of five short cruises before floats were deployed for approximately one year. The data returned by the floats comprise quantitative particle flux observations made at high-enough temporal resolution to interpret in the context of short-term, upper-ocean production events. For a complete list of measurements, refer to the supplemental document 'Field_names.pdf', and a full dataset description is included in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: http://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/728335
Float profile data collected during surface ascents in the Sargasso Sea from 2013-2014.

(Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). Contact: bco-dmo-data@whoi.edu, 2018-04-24) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Buesseler, Kenneth O.

Optical proxy measurements of sinking particle flux and water-column bio-optical profiles were obtained from profiling floats in the Sargasso Sea to expand the number of particle flux observations in the critical and under-sampled “twilight zone”. Particulate organic carbon flux derived from float-based optical sediment trap measurements was validated against fluxes measured directly with co-deployed, drifting neutrally-buoyant, sediment traps during a series of five short cruises before floats were deployed for approximately one year. The data returned by the floats comprise quantitative particle flux observations made at high-enough temporal resolution to interpret in the context of short-term, upper-ocean production events. For a complete list of measurements, refer to the supplemental document 'Field_names.pdf', and a full dataset description is included in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: http://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/728347
TPC, PIC, POC, TPN, and Th-234 from in-situ pumps at the Porcupine Abyssal Plain Sustained Observatory (PAP-SO) site in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean during RRS Discovery cruise DY077 in April of 2017

(Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). Contact: bco-dmo-data@whoi.edu, 2019-06-26) Buesseler, Kenneth O. ; Estapa, Margaret L.

TPC, PIC, POC, TPN, and Th-234 from in-situ pumps at the Porcupine Abyssal Plain Sustained Observatory (PAP-SO) site in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean during RRS Discovery cruise DY077 in April of 2017. For a complete list of measurements, refer to the full dataset description in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: https://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/765850
Water column Th-234 activities from 4-liter water samples at the Porcupine Abyssal Plain Sustained Observatory (PAP-SO) site in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean during RRS Discovery cruise DY077 in April of 2017

(Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). Contact: bco-dmo-data@whoi.edu, 2019-06-26) Buesseler, Kenneth O. ; Estapa, Margaret L.

Water column Th-234 activities from 4-liter water samples at the Porcupine Abyssal Plain Sustained Observatory (PAP-SO) site in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean during RRS Discovery cruise DY077 in April of 2017. For a complete list of measurements, refer to the full dataset description in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: https://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/765859
Profiling float surface dates, times and locations from the Sargasso Sea from 2013 to 2014.

(Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). Contact: bco-dmo-data@whoi.edu, 2018-04-24) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Buesseler, Kenneth O.

Optical proxy measurements of sinking particle flux and water-column bio-optical profiles were obtained from profiling floats in the Sargasso Sea to expand the number of particle flux observations in the critical and under-sampled “twilight zone”. A typical float cycle consisted of the descent to the target park depth, a park phase at the target depth which cycled among depths ranging 150-1000 m, a descent to 1000 m, an ascent to the surface during which measurements are made, and a surface telemetry phase, during which a GPS fix is obtained. Dates, times, and locations obtained during the surface telemetry phase are provided. For a complete list of measurements, refer to the supplemental document 'Field_names.pdf', and a full dataset description is included in the supplemental file 'Dataset_description.pdf'. The most current version of this dataset is available at: http://www.bco-dmo.org/dataset/728359
Rate and apparent quantum yield of photodissolution of sedimentary organic matter

(Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography, 2012-11) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Mayer, Lawrence M. ; Boss, Emmanuel S.

We quantified rates of photochemical dissolution (photodissolution) of organic carbon in coastal Louisiana suspended sediments, conducting experiments under well-defined conditions of irradiance and temperature. Optical properties of the suspended sediments were characterized and used in a radiative transfer model to compute irradiances within turbid suspensions. Photodissolution rate increased with temperature (T), with activation energy of 32 ± 7 kJ mol−1, which implicates indirect (non-photochemical) steps in the net reaction. In most samples, dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration increased approximately linearly with time over the first 4 h of irradiation under broadband simulated sunlight, after higher rates in the initial hour of irradiation. Four-hour rates ranged from 2.3 µmol DOC m−3 s−1 to 3.2 µmol DOC m−3 s−1, but showed no relation to sample origin within the study area, organic carbon or reducible iron content, or mass-specific absorption coefficient. First-hour rates were higher—from 3.5 µmol DOC m−3 s−1 to 7.8 µmol DOC m−3 s−1—and correlated well with sediment reducible iron (itself often associated with organic matter). The spectral apparent quantum yield (AQY) for photodissolution was computed by fitting DOC photoproduction rates under different spectral irradiance distributions to corresponding rates of light absorption by particles. The photodissolution AQY magnitude is similar to most published dissolved-phase AQY spectra for dissolved inorganic carbon photoproduction, which suggests that in turbid coastal waters where particles dominate light absorption, DOC photoproduction from particles exceeds photooxidation of DOC.
High-resolution spatial and temporal measurements of particulate organic carbon flux using thorium-234 in the northeast Pacific Ocean during the EXport processes in the ocean from RemoTe sensing field campaign

(University of California Press, 2020-12-10) Buesseler, Ken O. ; Benitez-Nelson, Claudia R. ; Roca-Martí, Montserrat ; Wyatt, Abigale M. ; Resplandy, Laure ; Clevenger, Samantha J. ; Drysdale, Jessica A. ; Estapa, Margaret L. ; Pike, Steven M. ; Umhau, Blaire P.

The EXport Processes in the Ocean from RemoTe Sensing (EXPORTS) program of National Aeronautics and Space Administration focuses on linking remotely sensed properties from satellites to the mechanisms that control the transfer of carbon from surface waters to depth. Here, the naturally occurring radionuclide thorium-234 was used as a tracer of sinking particle flux. More than 950 234Th measurements were made during August–September 2018 at Ocean Station Papa in the northeast Pacific Ocean. High-resolution vertical sampling enabled observations of the spatial and temporal evolution of particle flux in Lagrangian fashion. Thorium-234 profiles were remarkably consistent, with steady-state (SS) 234Th fluxes reaching 1,450 ± 300 dpm m−2 d−1 at 100 m. Nonetheless, 234Th increased by 6%–10% in the upper 60 m during the cruise, leading to consideration of a non-steady-state (NSS) model and/or horizontal transport, with NSS having the largest impact by decreasing SS 234Th fluxes by 30%. Below 100 m, NSS and SS models overlapped. Particulate organic carbon (POC)/234Th ratios decreased with depth in small (1–5 μm) and mid-sized (5–51 μm) particles, while large particle (>51 μm) ratios remained relatively constant, likely influenced by swimmer contamination. Using an average SS and NSS 234Th flux and the POC/234Th ratio of mid-sized particles, we determined a best estimate of POC flux. Maximum POC flux was 5.5 ± 1.7 mmol C m−2 d−1 at 50 m, decreasing by 70% at the base of the primary production zone (117 m). These results support earlier studies that this site is characterized by a modest biological carbon pump, with an export efficiency of 13% ± 5% (POC flux/net primary production at 120 m) and 39% flux attenuation in the subsequent 100 m (POC flux 220 m/POC flux 120m). This work sets the foundation for understanding controls on the biological carbon pump during this EXPORTS campaign.
Pump it Up workshop report

(Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, 2017-10-20) Buesseler, Ken O. ; Adams, Allan ; Bellingham, James G. ; Dever, Mathieu ; Edgcomb, Virginia P. ; Estapa, Margaret L. ; Frank, Alex ; Gallager, Scott M. ; Govindarajan, Annette F. ; Horner, Tristan J. ; Hunter, Jon ; Jakuba, Michael V. ; Kapit, Jason ; Katija, Kakani ; Lawson, Gareth L. ; Lu, Yuehan ; Mahadevan, Amala ; Nicholson, David P. ; Omand, Melissa M. ; Palevsky, Hilary I. ; Rauch, Chris ; Sosik, Heidi M. ; Ulmer, Kevin M. ; Wurgaft, Eyal ; Yoerger, Dana R.

A two-day workshop was conducted to trade ideas and brainstorm about how to advance our understanding of the ocean’s biological pump. The goal was to identify the most important scientific issues that are unresolved but might be addressed with new and future technological advances.
Observations of carbon export by small sinking particles in the upper mesopelagic

(Elsevier, 2015-02-27) Durkin, Colleen A. ; Estapa, Margaret L. ; Buesseler, Ken O.

Carbon and nutrients are transported out of the surface ocean and sequestered at depth by sinking particles. Sinking particle sizes span many orders of magnitude and the relative influence of small particles on carbon export compared to large particles has not been resolved. To determine the influence of particle size on carbon export, the flux of both small (11–64 μm) and large (> 64 μm) particles in the upper mesopelagic was examined during 5 cruises of the Bermuda Atlantic Time Series (BATS) in the Sargasso Sea using neutrally buoyant sediment traps mounted with tubes containing polyacrylamide gel layers and tubes containing a poisoned brine layer. Particles were also collected in surface-tethered, free-floating traps at higher carbon flux locations in the tropical and subtropical South Atlantic Ocean. Particle sizes spanning three orders of magnitude were resolved in gel samples, included sinking particles as small as 11 μm. At BATS, the number flux of small particles tended to increase with depth, whereas the number flux of large particles tended to decrease with depth. The carbon content of different sized particles could not be modeled by a single set of parameters because the particle composition varied across locations and over time. The modeled carbon flux by small particles at BATS, including all samples and depths, was 39 ± 20% of the modeled total carbon flux, and the percentage increased with depth in 4 out of the 5 months sampled. These results indicate that small particles (< 64 μm) are actively settling in the water column and are an important contributor to carbon flux throughout the mesopelagic. Observations and models that overlook these particles will underestimate the vertical flux of organic matter in the ocean.
Role of iron and organic carbon in mass-specific light absorption by particulate matter from Louisiana coastal waters

(Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography, 2012-01) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Boss, Emmanuel S. ; Mayer, Lawrence M. ; Roesler, Collin S.

We investigated the influences of organic content and mineralogical composition on light absorption by mostly mineral suspended particles in aquatic and coastal marine systems. Mass-specific absorption spectra of suspended particles and surface sediments from coastal Louisiana and the lower Mississippi and Atchafalaya rivers were measured with a centered sample-mount integrating sphere and analyzed in conjunction with organic carbon (OC), hydrochloric acid– (HCl-) extractable iron, and dithionite-extractable iron contents. Compositions and absorption properties were comparable to published values for similar particles. Dithionite-extractable iron was strongly correlated with absorption at ultraviolet (UV) and blue wavelengths, while OC and HCl-extractable iron were weakly but positively correlated. Oxidative removal of OC from sediments caused small and variable changes in absorption, while dithionite extraction of iron oxides strongly reduced absorption. Shoulders in the absorption spectra corresponded to absorption bands of iron oxide minerals, and their intensities were well correlated to dithionite-extractable iron contents of the samples. These findings support a primary role for iron oxide and hydroxide minerals in the mass-specific absorption of mostly inorganic particles from the terrestrially influenced coast of Louisiana. Riverine particles had higher dithionite-extractable iron contents and iron oxide–specific absorption features than did marine particles, consistent with current knowledge regarding differential transport of particulate iron oxides and hydroxides through estuarine salinity gradients and reductive alteration of these oxide phases on the Louisiana shelf. The quantifiable dependence of UV absorption features on iron oxide content suggests that, under certain conditions, in situ hyperspectral absorption measurements could be designed to monitor water-column iron mineral transport and transformation.
Biogenic sinking particle fluxes and sediment trap collection efficiency at Ocean Station Papa

(University of California Press, 2021-06-17) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Buesseler, Ken O. ; Durkin, Colleen A. ; Omand, Melissa M. ; Benitez-Nelson, Claudia R. ; Roca-Martí, Montserrat ; Breves, Elly ; Kelly, Roger P. ; Pike, Steven M.

Comprehensive field observations characterizing the biological carbon pump (BCP) provide the foundation needed to constrain mechanistic models of downward particulate organic carbon (POC) flux in the ocean. Sediment traps were deployed three times during the EXport Processes in the Ocean from RemoTe Sensing campaign at Ocean Station Papa in August–September 2018. We propose a new method to correct sediment trap sample contamination by zooplankton “swimmers.” We consider the advantages of polyacrylamide gel collectors to constrain swimmer influence and estimate the magnitude of possible trap biases. Measured sediment trap fluxes of thorium-234 are compared to water column measurements to assess trap performance and estimate the possible magnitude of fluxes by vertically migrating zooplankton that bypassed traps. We found generally low fluxes of sinking POC (1.38 ± 0.77 mmol C m–2 d–1 at 100 m, n = 9) that included high and variable contributions by rare, large particles. Sinking particle sizes generally decreased between 100 and 335 m. Measured 234Th fluxes were smaller than water column 234Th fluxes by a factor of approximately 3. Much of this difference was consistent with trap undersampling of both small (<32 μm) and rare, large particles (>1 mm) and with zooplankton active migrant fluxes. The fraction of net primary production exported below the euphotic zone (0.1% light level; Ez-ratio = 0.10 ± 0.06; ratio uncertainties are propagated from measurements with n = 7–9) was consistent with prior, late summer studies at Station P, as was the fraction of material exported to 100 m below the base of the euphotic zone (T100, 0.55 ± 0.35). While both the Ez-ratio and T100 parameters varied weekly, their product, which we interpret as overall BCP efficiency, was remarkably stable (0.055 ± 0.010), suggesting a tight coupling between production and recycling at Station P.
A visual tour of carbon export by sinking particles

(American Geophysical Union, 2021-10-06) Durkin, Colleen A. ; Buesseler, Ken O. ; Cetinić, Ivona ; Estapa, Margaret L. ; Kelly, Roger P. ; Omand, Melissa M.

To better quantify the ocean's biological carbon pump, we resolved the diversity of sinking particles that transport carbon into the ocean's interior, their contribution to carbon export, and their attenuation with depth. Sinking particles collected in sediment trap gel layers from four distinct ocean ecosystems were imaged, measured, and classified. The size and identity of particles was used to model their contribution to particulate organic carbon (POC) flux. Measured POC fluxes were reasonably predicted by particle images. Nine particle types were identified, and most of the compositional variability was driven by the relative contribution of aggregates, long cylindrical fecal pellets, and salp fecal pellets. While particle composition varied across locations and seasons, the entire range of compositions was measured at a single well-observed location in the subarctic North Pacific over one month, across 500 m of depth. The magnitude of POC flux was not consistently associated with a dominant particle class, but particle classes did influence flux attenuation. Long fecal pellets attenuated most rapidly with depth whereas certain other classes attenuated little or not at all with depth. Small particles (<100 μm) consistently contributed ∼5% to total POC flux in samples with higher magnitude fluxes. The relative importance of these small particle classes (spherical mini pellets, short oval fecal pellets, and dense detritus) increased in low flux environments (up to 46% of total POC flux). Imaging approaches that resolve large variations in particle composition across ocean basins, depth, and time will help to better parameterize biological carbon pump models.
Particle dynamics in the rising plume at Piccard Hydrothermal Field, Mid-Cayman Rise

(John Wiley & Sons, 2015-08-25) Estapa, Margaret L. ; Breier, John A. ; German, Christopher R.

Processes active in rising hydrothermal plumes, such as precipitation, particle aggregation, and biological growth, affect particle size distributions and can exert important influences on the biogeochemical impact of submarine venting of iron to the oceans and their sediments. However, observations to date of particle size distribution within these systems are both limited and conflicting. In a novel buoyant hydrothermal plume study at the recently discovered high-temperature (398°C) Piccard Hydrothermal Field, Mid-Cayman Rise, we report optical measurements of particle size distributions (PSDs). We describe the plume PSD in terms of a simple, power-law model commonly used in studies of upper and coastal ocean particle dynamics. Observed PSD slopes, derived from spectral beam attenuation and laser diffraction measurements, are among the highest found to date anywhere in the ocean and ranged from 2.9 to 8.5. Beam attenuation at 650 nm ranged from near zero to a rarely observed maximum of 192 m−1 at 3.5 m above the vent. We did not find large (>100 μm) particles that would settle rapidly to the sediments. Instead, beam attenuation was well-correlated to total iron, suggesting the first-order importance of particle dilution, rather than precipitation or dissolution, in the rising plume at Piccard. Our observations at Piccard caution against the assumption of rapid deposition of hydrothermal, particulate metal fluxes, and illustrate the need for more particle size and composition measurements across a broader range of sites, globally.
Concentrations, ratios, and sinking fluxes of major bioelements at Ocean Station Papa

(University of California Press, 2021-06-28) Roca-Martí, Montserrat ; Benitez-Nelson, Claudia R. ; Umhau, Blaire P. ; Wyatt, Abigale M. ; Clevenger, Samantha J. ; Pike, Steven M. ; Horner, Tristan J. ; Estapa, Margaret L. ; Resplandy, Laure ; Buesseler, Ken O.

Fluxes of major bioelements associated with sinking particles were quantified in late summer 2018 as part of the EXport Processes in the Ocean from RemoTe Sensing (EXPORTS) field campaign near Ocean Station Papa in the subarctic northeast Pacific. The thorium-234 method was used in conjunction with size-fractionated (1–5, 5–51, and >51 μm) concentrations of particulate nitrogen (PN), total particulate phosphorus (TPP), biogenic silica (bSi), and particulate inorganic carbon (PIC) collected using large volume filtration via in situ pumps. We build upon recent work quantifying POC fluxes during EXPORTS. Similar remineralization length scales were observed for both POC and PN across all particle size classes from depths of 50–500 m. Unlike bSi and PIC, the soft tissue–associated POC, PN, and TPP fluxes strongly attenuated from 50 m to the base of the euphotic zone (approximately 120 m). Cruise-average thorium-234-derived fluxes (mmol m–2 d–1) at 120 m were 1.7 ± 0.6 for POC, 0.22 ± 0.07 for PN, 0.019 ± 0.007 for TPP, 0.69 ± 0.26 for bSi, and 0.055 ± 0.022 for PIC. These bioelement fluxes were similar to previous observations at this site, with the exception of PIC, which was 1 to 2 orders of magnitude lower. Transfer efficiencies within the upper twilight zone (flux 220 m/flux 120 m) were highest for PIC (84%) and bSi (79%), followed by POC (61%), PN (58%), and TPP (49%). These differences indicate preferential remineralization of TPP relative to POC or PN and larger losses of soft tissue relative to biominerals in sinking particles below the euphotic zone. Comprehensive characterization of the particulate bioelement fluxes obtained here will support future efforts linking phytoplankton community composition and food-web dynamics to the composition, magnitude, and attenuation of material that sinks to deeper waters.

Estapa Margaret L.

Last Name

First Name

ORCID

Filters

Author

Subject

Date

Type

Has files

Settings

Sort By

Results per page

Search Results