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Wildfires as a source of aerosol nutrients and impacts on marine biogeochemical cycles

Presentation Date
Friday, December 16, 2022 at 9:00am - Friday, December 16, 2022 at 12:30pm
Location
McCormick Place - Poster Hall, Hall - A
Authors

Author

Abstract

Wildfires are a natural ecosystem disturbance, capable of devastation but also of generating and fertilising terrestrial ecosystems. Recent work also suggests a previously underappreciated role of fires in the Earth System: providing essential nutrients (e.g., nitrogen, phosphorus, and iron) to remote marine ecosystems. This new aerosol nutrient supply has the potential to stimulate marine primary productivity if it alleviates nutrient stress sufficiently. Here, we present results across a series of recent studies, using satellites, long term station observations, and the Community Earth System Model, which all point to the possibility of fire aerosol deposition altering marine biota, in different ocean regions, by providing the needed cocktail of nutrients. We focus discussion mainly on two examples: how nitrogen supply could impact Arctic Ocean productivity and how iron supply could impact Southern Ocean productivity.

Category
Biogeosciences
Funding Program Area(s)