Water column

About: Water column is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 13706 publications have been published within this topic receiving 496626 citations.

Compositions and transport of lipid biomarkers through the water column and surficial sediments of the equatorial Pacific Ocean

Abstract: A systematic investigation of fluxes and compositions of lipids through the water column and into sediments was conducted along the U.S. JGOFS EgPac transect from l2°N to l5°S at 140°W. Fluxes of lipids out of the euphotic zone varied spatially and temporally, ranging from ≈0.20 – 0.6 mmol lipid-C m−2 day−1. Lipid fluxes were greatly attenuated with increasing water column depth, dropping to 0.002-0.06 mmol lipid-C m−2 day−1 in deep-water sediment traps. Sediment accumulation rates for lipids were ≈ 0.0002 – 0.00003 mmol lipid-C m−2 day−1. Lipids comprised ≈ 11–23% of Corg in net-plankton, 10–30% in particles exiting the euphotic zone, 2–4% particles in the deep EgPac, and 0.1-1 % in sediments. Lipids were, in general, selectively lost due to their greater reactivity relative to bulk organic matter toward biogeochemical degradation in the water column and sediment. Qualitative changes in lipid compositions through the water column and into sediments are consistent with the reactive nature of lipids. Fatty acids were the most labile compounds, with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) being quickly lost from particles. Branchedchain C15 and C17 fatty acids increased in relative abundance as particulate matter sank and was incorporated into the sediment, indicating inputs of organic matter from bacteria. Long-chain C39 alkenones of marine origin and long-chain C20-C30 fatty acids, alcohols and hydrocarbons derived from land plants were selectively preserved in sediments. Compositional changes over time and space demonstrate the dynamic range of reactivities among individual biomarker compounds, and hence of organic matter as a whole. A thorough understanding of biogeochemical reprocessing of organic matter in the oceanic water column and sediments is, thus, essential for using the sediment record for reconstructing past oceanic environments.

Limacina helicina shell dissolution as an indicator of declining habitat suitability owing to ocean acidification in the California Current Ecosystem

Abstract: Few studies to date have demonstrated widespread biological impacts of ocean acidification (OA) under conditions currently found in the natural environment. From a combined survey of physical and chemical water properties and biological sampling along the Washington–Oregon–California coast in August 2011, we show that large portions of the shelf waters are corrosive to pteropods in the natural environment. We show a strong positive correlation between the proportion of pteropod individuals with severe shell dissolution damage and the percentage of undersaturated water in the top 100 m with respect to aragonite. We found 53% of onshore individuals and 24% of offshore individuals on average to have severe dissolution damage. Relative to pre-industrial CO2 concentrations, the extent of undersaturated waters in the top 100 m of the water column has increased over sixfold along the California Current Ecosystem (CCE). We estimate that the incidence of severe pteropod shell dissolution owing to anthropogenic OA has doubled in near shore habitats since pre-industrial conditions across this region and is on track to triple by 2050. These results demonstrate that habitat suitability for pteropods in the coastal CCE is declining. The observed impacts represent a baseline for future observations towards understanding broader scale OA effects.

Production and transport of methane in oceanic particulate organic matter

Abstract: METHANE is an important component of the global carbon cycle1 and a potent greenhouse gas2,3. Surface ocean waters are typically supersaturated with dissolved methane relative to atmospheric equilibrium, presumably as a result of in situ microbial methane production4–8. Because methanogenic bacteria are strict anaerobes9and surface ocean waters are highly oxygenated, the observation of methane supersaturation has been termed the 'oceanic methane paradox'10. Although methanogenic bacteria have been isolated from oceanic particulate matter, faecal pellets and zooplankton11–14, no data are available on in situ rates of methane formation in these microenvironments. During a series of experiments in the North Pacific ocean, we have identified a previously unrecognized component of the oceanic methane cycle. We find that methane is associated with sinking particles, presumably as a dissolved constituent of the interstitial fluids of particulate biogenic materials, which exchanges with the water column as particles sink. This phenomenon provides a mechanism for the active transport in the water column of an otherwise passive, dissolved species. The particle-to-seawater methane flux that we measure is sufficient to replace all of the methane present in the upper water column in about 50 days and to produce the characteristic methane supersaturations in less than a month. We suggest that particulate production and transport may also be relevant to the redistribution and cycling of other bioreactive compounds in the marine environment.