Nitrogen circulation in the water column in the Oyashio region with reference to its high productivity

Abstract

In order to determine quantitatively the reason for the high productivity in the Oyashio Region, which is the southwest part of the Pacific Subarctic Region, the annual-mean vertical circulation of nitrogen in the region was estimated from the vertical profiles of nitrate, dissolved oxygen and salinity, and sediment-trap data by adapting them to the balance equations. Estimates of the upwelling velocity (1.7×10−5cm sec−1) and the vertical diffusivity (2.1 cm2 sec−1) in the abyssal zone and the primary and secondary productivities (44 and 4 mgN m−2day−1, respectively) in the euphotic zone were close to those of previous works. The estimated vertical circulation of nitrogen strongly suggested that, since the divergence (5 mgN m−2day−1) is caused by the abyssal convergence (6 mgN m−2day−1) and the positive precipitation, the local new production (22 mgN m−2day−1) necessarily exceeds not only the sinking flux (10 mgN m−2day−1) itself but also the sum of the sinking flux and the downward diffusion of dissolved and particulate organic matter (7 mgN m−2day−1) produced probably in the euphotic zone. The important roles of the abyssal circulation, the winter convection, and the metabolic activity in the bathyal zone to support the high productivity in the euphotic zone were clarified quantitatively.