A massive phytoplankton bloom induced by an ecosystem-scale iron fertilization experiment in the equatorial Pacific Ocean
Abstract
The seeding of an expanse of surface waters in the equatorial Pacific Ocean with low concentrations of dissolved iron triggered a massive phytoplankton bloom which consumed large quantities of carbon dioxide and nitrate that these microscopic plants cannot fully utilize under natural conditions. These and other observations provide unequivocal support for the hypothesis that phytoplankton growth in this oceanic region is limited by iron bioavailability.
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Addition of iron to induce an algal bloom has been considered and tested as a strategy to sequester CO2.
“Interestingly, the addition of iron to induce an algal bloom has been considered and tested as a strategy to sequester CO2 [47–49].”
From Biofuels from algae: Challenges and potential (2010) · cites this paper as [49]
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- Authors
- Coale, K. H., Johnson, K. S., Fitzwater, S. E., Gordon, R. M., Tanner, S., Chavez, F. P., Ferioli, L., Sakamoto, C., Rogers, P., Millero, F., Steinberg, P., Nightingale, P., Cooper, D., Cochlan, W. P., Landry, M. R., Constantinou, J., Rollwagen, G., Trasvina, A., & Kudela, R.
- Affiliations
- Moss Landing Marine Laboratories (US)
- Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (US)
- University of Miami (US)
- University of East Anglia (GB)
- University of Southern California (US)
- University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (US)
- Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada (MX)
- ORCID
- Venue
- Nature
- Published
- 1996-10
- Volume
- 383
- Issue
- 6600
- Pages
- 495-501
- ISSN
- 0028-0836 (ISSN-L)
- 1476-4687
- OpenAlex
- W1990337497
- Cited by
- 1,479
- References
- 41
- Citations by year
- 2026: 12 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 23 · 2023: 38 · 2022: 25 · 2021: 24 · 2020: 28 · 2019: 32 · 2018: 28 · 2017: 23 · 2016: 26 · 2015: 43 · 2014: 41 · 2013: 38 · 2012: 37
- FWCI
- 53.91
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Nature (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Oceanographic literature review
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Oceanography › Marine and coastal ecosystems
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Environmental Chemistry › Aquatic Ecosystems and Phytoplankton Dynamics
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Paleontology › Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
- Keywords
- iron fertilization, phytoplankton blooms, iron limitation, iron bioavailability, ocean carbon uptake, nitrate consumption, equatorial Pacific, ocean primary productivity
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