Enhancement of primary productivity in the western North Pacific caused by the eruption of the Miyake‐jima Volcano

Abstract

The eruption of the Miyake‐jima Volcano (34.08°N, 139.53°E) in the Izu Islands, Japan, 180 km SSW of Tokyo, began on 8 July 2000. A substantial amount of NH3 gas was found to be emitted from the Miyake‐jima Volcano together with SO2 gas and that geochemically significant quantities of aerosol particles composed of ammonium sulfate form in the plume. Through the use of satellite images, the additional atmospheric deposition of ammonium sulfate caused an increase of phyto‐plankton in the nutrient‐deficient region south of the Kuroshio. The emission of volcanic gases from the Miyake‐jima has likely been modifying the marine air quality as well as the open ocean ecosystem over parts of the western North Pacific for the past several years.

Remotely sensed ammonia emission from fumarolic vents associated with a hydrothermally active fault in the Salton Sea Geothermal Field, California

“…In fact, ammonia from volcanoes and geothermal vents is not unusual [e.g., Cushman et al, 1980;Chiodini et al, 1988;Uematsu et al, 2004] and is usually assumed to originate primarily from the decomposition of organic material entrained in the strata or sediments through which the volcanic or hydrothermal fluids pass [Lilley et al, 1993;Brandes et al, 2008;Uematsu et al, 2004]. It is also recognized as a pollutant of long standing in the Salton Sea ecosystem [Holdren and Montaño, 2002, and references therein] and has been suggested as a possible contributor to occasional toxic episodes that give rise to mass fauna kills in the lake [Watts et al, 2001].…”

Geochemical evidence of oceanic iron fertilization by the Kasatochi volcanic eruption in 2008 and the potential impacts on Pacific sockeye salmon

“…Due to the high flux of volcanic ash in the North Pacific Ocean, atmospheric deposition of volcanic ash has been considered to be an important external Fe source in the region (Olgun et al 2011). The fertilizing potential of volcanic eruptions has been previously observed in the North Pacific Ocean region after the eruptions of Miyake-Jima in 2000 and Anatahano in 2003(Uematsu et al 2004, Lin et al 2011, and also in the neighboring rivers and lakes during the Mount St. Helens eruption in 1980 (Smith & White 1985).…”

“…Due to the high flux of volcanic ash in the North Pacific Ocean, atmospheric deposition of volcanic ash has been considered to be an important external Fe source in the region (Olgun et al 2011). The fertilizing potential of volcanic eruptions has been previously observed in the North Pacific Ocean region after the eruptions of Miyake-Jima in 2000 and Anatahano in 2003(Uematsu et al 2004, Lin et al 2011, and also in the neighboring rivers and lakes during the Mount St. Helens eruption in 1980 (Smith & White 1985).During July-August 2008, 3 explosive volcanic eruptions occurred in the remote Aleutian Islands of Alaska: at Okmok on 12 July, Cleveland on 21 July, and Kasatochi on 7 to 8 August (Waythomas et al 2008, Larsen et al 2009, Langmann et al 2010b). The Kasa tochi volcanic eruption was the largest of the 3 eruptions, producing several ash plumes that reached as high as 18 km above the sea level (Langmann et al 2010a, Waythomas et al 2010).…”

The role of airborne volcanic ash for the surface ocean biogeochemical iron-cycle: a review

“…These data can be used to retrieve bio-optical parameters such as Chl-a (see summary of satellite techniques in Langmann et al, 2010). Using SeaWIFS images, Uematsu et al (2004) argued that the plume produced by the powerful 2000 eruption of Miyakejima volcano, ∼200 km offshore Japan, instigated a rise in surface ocean Chl-a levels in the oligotrophic area downwind of the source (Uematsu et al, 2004). However, in this case, the inferred increase in MPP was primarily linked to inputs of ammonium-sulphate aerosols present in the volcanic cloud.…”