Biological production of the oceans: the case for a consensus

Abstract

Biological dynamics in the pelagic ocean are intermittent rather than steady. In oceanic regimes, where nitrogen is limiting to phytoplankton growth, an important fraction of the annual, primary production depends on transient episodes of increased nitrate supply: at such times the role of locally-regenerated nitrogen is correspondingly less. Proper averaging of these variable rates, in time and space, is the key to reconciliation of existing data on the biogenic fluxes of oxygen and carbon in the ocean. The magnitude of oceanic production supported by nitrate (the new production) is higher than previously thought.