Nutrient maximums related to low oxygen concentrations in the southern Canada Basin

The phenomenon of nutrient maximums at 70～200 m occurred only in the regionof the Canada Basin among the world oceans. The prevailing hypothesis was that the direct injectionof the low-temperature high-nutrient brines from the Chukchi Sea shelf (【 50 m) in winter providedthe nutrient maximums. However, we found that there are five problems in the direct injectionprocess. Formerly Jin et al. considered that the formation of nutrient maximums can be a process oflocally long-term regeneration. Here we propose a regeneration-mixture process. Data of temperature,salinity, oxygen and nutrients were collected at three stations in the southern Canada Basin duringthe summer 1999 cruise. We identified the cores of the surface, near-surface, potential temperaturemaximum waters and Arctic Bottom Water by the diagrams and vertical profiles of salinity, potentialtemperature, oxygen and nutrients. The historical ^(129)I data indicated that the surface andnear-surface waters were Pacific-origin, but the waters below the potential temperature maximum coredepth was Atlantic-origin. Along with the correlation of nutrient maximums and very low oxygencontents in the near-surface water, we hypothesize that, the putative organic matter was decomposedto inorganic nutrients; and the Pacific water was mixed with the Atlantic water in the transitionzone. The idea of the regeneration-mixture process agrees with the historical observations of noapparent seasonal changes, the smooth nutrient profiles, the lowest saturation of CaCO_3 above 400m, low rate of CFC-11 ventilation and ~3H-~3He ages of 8～18 a around the nutrient maximum depths.

The phenomenon of nutrient maximums at 70～200 m occurred only in the regionof the Canada Basin among the world oceans. The prevailing hypothesis was that the direct injectionof the low-temperature high-nutrient brines from the Chukchi Sea shelf (< 50 m) in winter providedthe nutrient maximums. However, we found that there are five problems in the direct injectionprocess. Formerly Jin et al. considered that the formation of nutrient maximums can be a process oflocally long-term regeneration. Here we propose a regeneration-mixture process. Data of temperature,salinity, oxygen and nutrients were collected at three stations in the southern Canada Basin duringthe summer 1999 cruise. We identified the cores of the surface, near-surface, potential temperaturemaximum waters and Arctic Bottom Water by the diagrams and vertical profiles of salinity, potentialtemperature, oxygen and nutrients. The historical ^(129)I data indicated that the surface andnear-surface waters were Pacific-origin, but the waters below the potential temperature maximum coredepth was Atlantic-origin. Along with the correlation of nutrient maximums and very low oxygencontents in the near-surface water, we hypothesize that, the putative organic matter was decomposedto inorganic nutrients; and the Pacific water was mixed with the Atlantic water in the transitionzone. The idea of the regeneration-mixture process agrees with the historical observations of noapparent seasonal changes, the smooth nutrient profiles, the lowest saturation of CaCO_3 above 400m, low rate of CFC-11 ventilation and ~3H-~3He ages of 8～18 a around the nutrient maximum depths.