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Abstract. Supply of iron (Fe) to the surface ocean supports primary productivity, and while hydrothermal input of Fe to the deep ocean is knownto be extensive it remains poorly constrained. Global estimates of hydrothermal Fe supply rely on using dissolved Fe (dFe) toexcess He (xs3He) ratios to upscale fluxes, but observational constraints on dFe/xs3He may be sensitive toassumptions linked to sampling and interpolation. We examined the variability in dFe/xs3He using two methods of estimation, forfour vent sites with different geochemistry along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. At both Rainbow and TAG, the plume was sampled repeatedly and the range ofdFe/xs3He was 4 to 63 and 4 to 87 nmol:fmol, respectively, primarily due to differences in plume age. To account for backgroundxs3He and shifting plume position, we calibrated He values using contemporaneous dissolved Mn (dMn). Applying thisapproach more widely, we found dFe/xs3He ratios of 12, 4–8, 4–44, and 4–86 nmol fmol−1 for the Menez Gwen, LuckyStrike, Rainbow, and TAG hydrothermal vent sites, respectively. Differences in plume dFe/xs3He across sites were not simplyrelated to the vent endmember Fe and He fluxes. Within 40 km of the vents, the dFe/xs3He ratios decreased to3–38 nmol fmol−1, due to the precipitation and subsequent settling of particulates. The ratio of colloidal Fe to dFe wasconsistently higher (0.67–0.97) than the deep N. Atlantic (0.5) throughout both the TAG and Rainbow plumes, indicative of Fe exchangebetween dissolved and particulate phases. Our comparison of TAG and Rainbow shows there is a limit to the amount of hydrothermal Fe releasedfrom vents that can form colloids in the rising plume. Higher particle loading will enhance the longevity of the Rainbow hydrothermal plume withinthe deep ocean assuming particles undergo continual dissolution/disaggregation. Future studies examining the length of plume pathways required toescape the ridge valley will be important in determining Fe supply from slow spreading mid-ocean ridges to the deep ocean, along with thefrequency of ultramafic sites such as Rainbow. Resolving the ridge valley bathymetry and accounting for variability in vent sources in globalbiogeochemical models will be key to further constraining the hydrothermal Fe flux.
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Mechanisms Driving the Dispersal of Hydrothermal Iron From the Northern Mid Atlantic Ridge
Abstract The dispersal of dissolved iron (DFe) from hydrothermal vents is poorly constrained. Combining field observations and a modeling hierarchy, we find the dispersal of DFe from the Trans‐Atlantic‐Geotraverse vent site occurs predominantly in the colloidal phase and is controlled by multiple physical processes. Enhanced mixing near the seafloor and transport through fracture zones at fine‐scales interacts with the wider ocean circulation to drive predominant westward DFe dispersal away from the Mid‐Atlantic ridge at the 100 km scale. In contrast, diapycnal mixing predominantly drives northward DFe transport within the ridge axial valley. The observed DFe dispersal is not reproduced by the coarse resolution ocean models typically used to assess ocean iron cycling due to their omission of local topography and mixing. Unless biogeochemical models account for fine‐scale physics and colloidal Fe, they will inaccurately represent DFe dispersal from axial valley ridge systems, which make up half of the global ocean ridge crest.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1840868
- PAR ID:
- 10385596
- Publisher / Repository:
- DOI PREFIX: 10.1029
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Geophysical Research Letters
- Volume:
- 49
- Issue:
- 22
- ISSN:
- 0094-8276
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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