Overview of the US JGOFS Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS): a decade-scale look at ocean biology and biogeochemistry

Steinberg, Deborah K.; Carlson, Craig A.; Bates, Nicholas R.; Johnson, Rodney J.; Michaels, Anthony F.; Knap, Anthony H.

doi:10.1016/s0967-0645(00)00148-x

Cited by 600 publications

(718 citation statements)

References 150 publications

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“…At low nutrient concentrations picophytoplankton groups, such as Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus, dominate (Lomas and Moran, 2011;Sarmiento and Gruber, 2006, and references therein; Steinberg et al, 2001), as also confirmed by the particle size distribution data ( Figure S3). …”

Section: Oligotrophic (20ºn-35ºn)supporting

confidence: 59%

Latitudinal distributions of particulate carbon export across the North Western Atlantic Ocean

Puigcorbé

Roca‐Martí

Masqué

et al. 2017

Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers

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Abstract234 Th-derived carbon export fluxes were measured in the Atlantic Ocean under the GEOTRACES framework to evaluate basin-scale export variability. Here, we present the results from the northern half of the GA02 transect, spanning from the equator to 64°N. As a result of limited site-specific C/ 234 Th ratio measurements, we further combined our data with previous work to develop a basin wide C/ 234 Th ratio depth curve. While the magnitude of organic carbon fluxes varied depending on the C/ 234 Th ratio used, latitudinal trends were similar, with sizeable and variable organic carbon export fluxes occurring at high latitudes and low to negligible fluxes occurring in oligotrophic waters. Our results agree with previous studies, except at the boundaries between domains, where fluxes were relatively enhanced.Three different models were used to obtain satellite-derived net primary production (NPP). In general, NPP estimates had similar trends along the transect, but there were significant differences in the absolute magnitude depending on the model used. Nevertheless, organic carbon export efficiencies were generally < 25%, with the exception of a few stations located in the transition area between the riverine and the oligotrophic domains and between the oligotrophic and the temperate domains. Satellite-derived organic carbon export models from Dunne et al. (2005) The large increase in export data in the Atlantic Ocean derived from the GEOTRACES Program, combined with satellite observations and modeling efforts continue to improve the estimates of carbon export in this ocean basin and therefore reduce uncertainty in the global carbon budget.However, our results also suggest that tuning export models and including biological parameters at a regional scale is necessary for improving satellite-modeling efforts and providing export estimates that are more representative of in situ observations.

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Section: Oligotrophic (20ºn-35ºn)supporting

confidence: 59%

Latitudinal distributions of particulate carbon export across the North Western Atlantic Ocean

Puigcorbé

Roca‐Martí

Masqué

et al. 2017

Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers

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“…Deep mixing entrains nutrients into the surface waters stimulating spring phytoplankton blooms that reached a productivity maximum a month after maximal MLD (Figure 2a). The annual deep mixing and subsequent phytoplankton blooms initiate important annual organic and inorganic nutrient dynamics at this site (see Steinberg et al, 2001;Hansell and Carlson, 2001). The timing of deep mixing varied between early January and late February during this study.…”

Section: Annual Variability Of Depth-integrated Sar11 Stocksmentioning

confidence: 77%

“…All cruises were conducted as part of the larger BATS program and sampled at least monthly with biweekly sampling each year between January and March. This sampling strategy has been successful in revealing the major temporal microbial and biogeochemical patterns (Carlson et al, 1996;Steinberg et al, 2001;Morris et al, 2005). A broader assessment of the BATS biogeochemical data is presented elsewhere (see Deep Sea Research II volumes 43 (2-3) and 48 (8-9) for relevant studies).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seasonal dynamics of SAR11 populations in the euphotic and mesopelagic zones of the northwestern Sargasso Sea

et al. 2008

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Bacterioplankton belonging to the SAR11 clade of a-proteobacteria were counted by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) over eight depths in the surface 300 m at the Bermuda Atlantic Timeseries Study (BATS) site from 2003 to 2005. SAR11 are dominant heterotrophs in oligotrophic systems; thus, resolving their temporal dynamics can provide important insights to the cycling of organic and inorganic nutrients. This quantitative time-series data revealed distinct annual distribution patterns of SAR11 abundance in the euphotic (0-120) and upper mesopelagic (160-300 m) zones that were reproducibly correlated with seasonal mixing and stratification of the water column. Terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) data generated from a decade of samples collected at BATS were combined with the FISH data to model the annual dynamics of SAR11 subclade populations. 16S rRNA gene clone libraries were constructed to verify the correlation of the T-RFLP data with SAR11 clade structure. Clear vertical and temporal transitions were observed in the dominance of three SAR11 ecotypes. The mechanisms that lead to shifts between the different SAR11 populations are not well understood, but are probably a consequence of finely tuned physiological adaptations that partition the populations along physical and chemical gradients in the ecosystem. The correlation between evolutionary descent and temporal/spatial patterns we describe, confirmed that a minimum of three SAR11 ecotypes occupy the Sargasso Sea surface layer, and revealed new details of their population dynamics.

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“…A time-series 1-D budget of C at BATS revealed imbalances in the seasonal drawdown of inorganic C that is not reflected in C export . Indeed, the mean export of carbon measured by sediment traps (Steinberg et al, 2001) amounts to only one quarter of the annual new production implied by geochemical tracer observations in the region (Jenkins and Goldman, 1985;Jenkins, 1988a,b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Particle fluxes associated with mesoscale eddies in the Sargasso Sea

Buesseler

Lamborg

Cai

et al. 2008

Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography

117

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We examined the impact of a cyclonic eddy and mode-water eddy on particle flux in the Sargasso Sea. The primary method used to quantify flux was based upon measurements of the natural radionuclide, 234 Th, and these flux estimates were compared to results from sediment traps in both eddies, and a 210 Po/ 210 Pb flux method in the mode-water eddy. Particulate organic carbon (POC) fluxes at 150m ranged from 1 to 4 mmol C m -2 d -1 and were comparable between methods, especially considering differences in integration times scales of each approach. Our main conclusion is that relative to summer mean conditions at the Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS) site, eddy-driven changes in biogeochemistry did not enhance local POC fluxes during this later, more mature stage of the eddy life cycle (>6 months old). The absence of an enhancement in POC flux puts a constraint on the timing of higher POC flux events, which are thought to have caused the local O 2 minima below each eddy, and must have taken place >2 months prior to our arrival. The mode-water eddy did enhance preferentially diatom biomass in its center where we estimated a factor of 3 times higher biogenic Si flux than the BATS summer 2 average. An unexpected finding in the highly depth resolved 234 Th data sets are narrow layers of particle export and remineralization within the eddy. In particular, a strong excess 234 Th signal is seen below the deep chlorophyll maxima which we attribute to remineralization of 234 Th bearing particles. At this depth below the euphotic zone, de novo particle production in the euphotic zone has stopped, yet particle remineralization continues via consumption of labile sinking material by bacteria and/or zooplankton. These data suggest that further study of processes in ocean layers is warranted not only within, but below the euphotic zone.

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Overview of the US JGOFS Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS): a decade-scale look at ocean biology and biogeochemistry

Cited by 600 publications

References 150 publications

Latitudinal distributions of particulate carbon export across the North Western Atlantic Ocean

Latitudinal distributions of particulate carbon export across the North Western Atlantic Ocean

Seasonal dynamics of SAR11 populations in the euphotic and mesopelagic zones of the northwestern Sargasso Sea

Particle fluxes associated with mesoscale eddies in the Sargasso Sea

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