Carbon flow through inshore marine environments of the Vestfold Hills, East Antarctica

TL;DRAbstract

The first integrated study in the Antarctic region of the marine carbon cycle over an entire annual period, including organic carbon formation, remineralisation, sedimentation and burial, was undertaken during two summers and the intervening winter from December 1993 to February 1995 at two sites in the Vestfold Hills region, East Antarctica: offshore at O'Gorman Rocks and in semi-enclosed Ellis Fjord. A single peak in uptake of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) occurred at the O'Gorman Rocks site in the first summer, while three peaks, resulting from different phytoplankton communities, were observed in the second. Net organic carbon (OC) production calculated from the uptake of DIC reached 2.1 mg kg-1. The sum of particulate and dissolved OC was typically only 30 % of the calculated total, suggesting rapid sedimentation of OC or transfer to higher trophic levels. After the end of OC production in autumn the concentrations of DIC and nutrients increased slowly and steadily to late wint

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