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Revisiting the distribution of oceanic N2 fixation and estimating diazotrophic contribution to marine production.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Tang, W; Wang, S; Fonseca-Batista, D; Dehairs, F; Gifford, S; Gonzalez, AG; Gallinari, M; Planquette, H; Sarthou, G; Cassar, N
Published in: Nature communications
February 2019

Marine N2 fixation supports a significant portion of oceanic primary production by making N2 bioavailable to planktonic communities, in the process influencing atmosphere-ocean carbon fluxes and our global climate. However, the geographical distribution and controlling factors of marine N2 fixation remain elusive largely due to sparse observations. Here we present unprecedented high-resolution underway N2 fixation estimates across over 6000 kilometers of the western North Atlantic. Unexpectedly, we find increasing N2 fixation rates from the oligotrophic Sargasso Sea to North America coastal waters, driven primarily by cyanobacterial diazotrophs. N2 fixation is best correlated to phosphorus availability and chlorophyll-a concentration. Globally, intense N2 fixation activity in the coastal oceans is validated by a meta-analysis of published observations and we estimate the annual coastal N2 fixation flux to be 16.7 Tg N. This study broadens the biogeography of N2 fixation, highlights the interplay of regulating factors, and reveals thriving diazotrophic communities in coastal waters with potential significance to the global nitrogen and carbon cycles.

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Published In

Nature communications

DOI

EISSN

2041-1723

ISSN

2041-1723

Publication Date

February 2019

Volume

10

Issue

1

Start / End Page

831

Related Subject Headings

  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
  • Plankton
  • Phylogeny
  • Phosphorus
  • North America
  • Nitrogen Fixation
  • Marine Biology
  • Cyanobacteria
  • Chlorophyll A
  • Biological Availability
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
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Tang, W., Wang, S., Fonseca-Batista, D., Dehairs, F., Gifford, S., Gonzalez, A. G., … Cassar, N. (2019). Revisiting the distribution of oceanic N2 fixation and estimating diazotrophic contribution to marine production. Nature Communications, 10(1), 831. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-08640-0
Tang, Weiyi, Seaver Wang, Debany Fonseca-Batista, Frank Dehairs, Scott Gifford, Aridane G. Gonzalez, Morgane Gallinari, Hélène Planquette, Géraldine Sarthou, and Nicolas Cassar. “Revisiting the distribution of oceanic N2 fixation and estimating diazotrophic contribution to marine production.Nature Communications 10, no. 1 (February 2019): 831. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-08640-0.
Tang W, Wang S, Fonseca-Batista D, Dehairs F, Gifford S, Gonzalez AG, et al. Revisiting the distribution of oceanic N2 fixation and estimating diazotrophic contribution to marine production. Nature communications. 2019 Feb;10(1):831.
Tang, Weiyi, et al. “Revisiting the distribution of oceanic N2 fixation and estimating diazotrophic contribution to marine production.Nature Communications, vol. 10, no. 1, Feb. 2019, p. 831. Epmc, doi:10.1038/s41467-019-08640-0.
Tang W, Wang S, Fonseca-Batista D, Dehairs F, Gifford S, Gonzalez AG, Gallinari M, Planquette H, Sarthou G, Cassar N. Revisiting the distribution of oceanic N2 fixation and estimating diazotrophic contribution to marine production. Nature communications. 2019 Feb;10(1):831.

Published In

Nature communications

DOI

EISSN

2041-1723

ISSN

2041-1723

Publication Date

February 2019

Volume

10

Issue

1

Start / End Page

831

Related Subject Headings

  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S
  • Plankton
  • Phylogeny
  • Phosphorus
  • North America
  • Nitrogen Fixation
  • Marine Biology
  • Cyanobacteria
  • Chlorophyll A
  • Biological Availability