2017/12/05 by Saeed Roshan, Tim DeVries · 2 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Marine and coastal ecosystems #Ocean Acidification Effects and Responses #Oceanographic and Atmospheric Processes
paper · pdf · doi:10.1038/s41467-017-02227-3
openalex publication_date 2017/12/05 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
Biologically fixed carbon is transferred from the surface to deep ocean as sinking particles or dissolved organic carbon (DOC). DOC is estimated to account for ~20% of global export production, but the degree to which this varies regionally has not been assessed at a global scale. Here we present the first observationally based global-scale assessment of DOC production and export, obtained by combining an artificial neural network estimate of the global DOC distribution, and a data-constrained ocean circulation model. Our results demonstrate that the efficiency of DOC production and export varies more than threefold across oceanographic regions. DOC production and export display a pronounced peak in the oligotrophic subtropical oceans, where DOC accounts for roughly half of the total organic carbon export. These stratified nutrient-depleted regions are expected to expand with future warming, amplifying the role of DOC in the biological pump, and magnifying the need to improve DOC cycling in climate models.