Ocean carbon: A dent in the iron hypothesis

Plankton blooms do not send atmospheric carbon to the deep ocean

		IMAGE: This is Jim Bishop and Todd Wood with a recent version of the Carbon Explorer float, which can descend to a kilometer beneath the surface, measure particulate carbon (and other... Click here for more information.

BERKELEY, CA – Oceanographers Jim Bishop and Todd Wood of the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have measured the fate of carbon particles originating in plankton blooms in the Southern Ocean, using data that deep-diving Carbon Explorer floats collected around the clock for well over a year. Their study reveals that most of the carbon from lush plankton blooms never reaches the deep ocean.