Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Ocean Circulation Causes Strong Variability In The Mid-Atlantic Bight Nitrogen Budget, Marjorie A.M. Friedrichs, Pierre St-Laurent, Yongjin Xiao, Eileen Hofmann, Kimberly Hyde, Antonio Mannino, Raymond G. Najjar, Diego A. Narváez, Sergio R. Signorini, Hanqin Tian, John Wilkin, Yuanzhi Yao, Jianhong Xue

CCPO Publications

Understanding of nitrogen cycling on continental shelves, a critical component of global nutrient cycling, is hampered by limited observations compared to the strong variability on a wide range of time and space scales. Numerical models have the potential to partially alleviate this issue by filling spatiotemporal data gaps and hence resolving annual area-integrated nutrient fluxes. In this study, a three-dimensional biogeochemical-circulation model was implemented to simulate the Mid-Atlantic Bight (MAB) nitrogen budget. Model results demonstrate that, on average, MAB net community production (NCP) was positive (+0.27 Tg N/year), indicating net autotrophy. Interannual variability in NCP was strong, with annual values …