ALBERT

Description: Satellite CO 2 retrievals from the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT), Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), and Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) and in-situ measurements from the Earth System Research Laboratory (NOAA-ESRL) Surface CO 2 and Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON) are utilized to explore the CO 2 variability at different altitudes. A multiple regression method is used to calculate the CO 2 annual cycle and semiannual cycle amplitudes from different data sets. The CO 2 annual cycle and semiannual cycle amplitudes for GOSAT X CO2 and TCCON X CO2 are consistent, but smaller than those seen in the NOAA-ESRL surface data. The CO 2 annual and semiannual cycles are smallest in the AIRS mid-tropospheric CO 2 compared with other data sets in the northern hemisphere. The amplitudes for the CO 2 annual cycle and semiannual cycle from GOSAT, TES, and AIRS CO 2 are small and comparable to each other in the southern hemisphere. Similar regression analysis is applied to the Model for OZone And Related chemical Tracers-2 (MOZART-2) and CarbonTracker model CO 2 . The convolved model CO 2 annual cycle and semiannual cycle amplitudes are similar to those from the satellite CO 2 retrievals, although the models tend to underestimate the CO 2 seasonal cycle amplitudes in the northern hemisphere mid-latitudes and underestimate the CO 2 semi-annual cycle amplitudes in the high latitudes. These results can be used to better understand the vertical structures for the CO 2 annual cycle and semiannual cycle and help identify deficiencies in the models, which are very important for the carbon budget study. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Description: In oligotrophic tropical and subtropical oceans, where strong stratification can limit the replenishment of surface nitrate, dinitrogen (N2) fixation by diazotrophs can represent a significant source of nitrogen (N) for primary production. The VAHINE experiment was designed to examine the fate of diazotroph derived nitrogen (DDN) in such ecosystems. In austral summer 2013 three large (~ 50 m3) in situ mesocosms were deployed for 23 days in the New Caledonia lagoon, an ecosystem that typifies the low-nutrient, low-chlorophyll environment, to stimulate diazotroph production. The zooplankton component of the study aimed to measure the incorporation of DDN into zooplankton biomass, and assess the role of direct diazotroph grazing by zooplankton as a DDN uptake pathway. Inside the mesocosms the diatom-diazotroph association (DDA) het-1 predominated during day 5-15 while the unicellular diazotrophic cyanobacteria UCYN-C predominated during day 15-23. A Trichodesmium bloom was observed in the lagoon (outside the mesocosms) towards the end of the experiment. The zooplankton community was dominated by copepods (63 % of total abundance) for the duration of the experiment. Using two source N isotope mixing models we estimated a mean ~ 30 % contribution of DDN to zooplankton biomass at the start of the experiment, indicating that the natural summer peak of N2 fixation in the lagoon was already contributing significantly to the zooplankton. Stimulation of N2 fixation BNF in the mesocosms corresponded with a generally low level enhancement of DDN contribution to zooplankton biomass, but with a peak of ~ 70 % in Mesocosm 1 following the UCYN-C bloom. qPCR analysis targeting four of the common diazotroph groups present in the mesocosms (Trichodesmium, het-1, het-2, UCYN-C) demonstrated that all were ingested by copepod grazers and that target abundance generally corresponded with their in situ abundance. 15N2 labeled grazing experiments provided evidence for direct ingestion and assimilation of UCYN-C-derived N by the zooplankton, but not for het-1 and Trichodesmium, supporting an important role of secondary pathways of DDN to the zooplankton for the latter groups, i.e., DDN contributions to the dissolved N pool and uptake by non-diazotrophs. This study appears to provide the first evidence of direct UCYN-C grazing by zooplankton, and indicates that UCYN-C-derived N contributes significantly to the zooplankton food web in the New Caledonia lagoon though a combination of direct grazing and secondary pathways.

Description: In oligotrophic tropical and subtropical oceans, where strong stratification can limit the replenishment of surface nitrate, dinitrogen (N2) fixation by diazotrophs can represent a significant source of nitrogen (N) for primary production. The VAHINE (VAriability of vertical and tropHIc transfer of fixed N2 in the south-wEst Pacific) experiment was designed to examine the fate of diazotroph-derived nitrogen (DDN) in such ecosystems. In austral summer 2013, three large ( ∼  50 m3) in situ mesocosms were deployed for 23 days in the New Caledonia lagoon, an ecosystem that typifies the low-nutrient, low-chlorophyll environment, to stimulate diazotroph production. The zooplankton component of the study aimed to measure the incorporation of DDN into zooplankton biomass, and assess the role of direct diazotroph grazing by zooplankton as a DDN uptake pathway. Inside the mesocosms, the diatom–diazotroph association (DDA) het-1 predominated during days 5–15 while the unicellular diazotrophic cyanobacteria UCYN-C predominated during days 15–23. A Trichodesmium bloom was observed in the lagoon (outside the mesocosms) towards the end of the experiment. The zooplankton community was dominated by copepods (63 % of total abundance) for the duration of the experiment. Using two-source N isotope mixing models we estimated a mean  ∼  28 % contribution of DDN to zooplankton nitrogen biomass at the start of the experiment, indicating that the natural summer peak of N2 fixation in the lagoon was already contributing significantly to the zooplankton. Stimulation of N2 fixation in the mesocosms corresponded with a generally low-level enhancement of DDN contribution to zooplankton nitrogen biomass, but with a peak of  ∼  73 % in mesocosm 1 following the UCYN-C bloom. qPCR analysis targeting four of the common diazotroph groups present in the mesocosms (Trichodesmium, het-1, het-2, UCYN-C) demonstrated that all four were ingested by copepod grazers, and that their abundance in copepod stomachs generally corresponded with their in situ abundance. 15N2 labelled grazing experiments therefore provided evidence for direct ingestion and assimilation of UCYN-C-derived N by the zooplankton, but not for het-1 and Trichodesmium, supporting an important role of secondary pathways of DDN to the zooplankton for the latter groups, i.e. DDN contributions to the dissolved N pool and uptake by nondiazotrophs. This study appears to provide the first evidence of direct UCYN-C grazing by zooplankton, and indicates that UCYN-C-derived N contributes significantly to the zooplankton food web in the New Caledonia lagoon through a combination of direct grazing and secondary pathways.