Iron redox cycling and subsurface offshore transport in the eastern tropical South Pacific oxygen minimum zone

Abstract

The distributions of dissolved iron (Fe), Fe(II) and Fe(III)-binding organic ligands were investigated in the upper 1000m of the eastern tropical South Pacific from January to March 2010, during an El Niño event. Dissolved Fe concentrations were exceedingly low in surface waters, showed minima near the chlorophyll maxima, and increased below that depth. High rates of nitrogen fixation have been inferred for this region from models, but our data suggest that surface Fe is frequently too low to support diazotrophs. Dissolved Fe and organic Fe(III) ligand concentrations at mid-depth were elevated in the nearshore stations, where virtually all dissolved Fe(III) was bound to these ligands. Subsurface Fe(II) maxima were observed in the secondary nitrite maxima of the oxygen minimum zone (OMZ), comprising 8 to 68% of dissolved Fe. Dissolved Fe concentrations displayed local maxima coinciding with the maxima in Fe(II) and nitrite. We propose that this zone, the most reducing part of the OMZ, plays an important role in Fe transport in the upper 400m of the water column.