The Relationship Between Iron Availability and Phytoplankton Productivity in the Souther Ocean

如果不知道为什么主要营养物质在近海和开阔海域永远不会枯竭的原因，就永远不会充分了解南大洋。马丁博士建议检验一种假设，即南大洋浮游植物的生产力与铁的供应有直接关系。1989年3月/4月在德雷克海峡的公海水域和1990年1月/2月在罗斯海采集了验证这一假说的样本。初步结果表明，铁缺乏是浮游植物未能在南大洋近海水域繁殖和消耗主要营养物质的主要原因。本提案要求延长一年的资金，以支持我们继续分析样品和测试缺铁假说。

The Southern Ocean will never be adequately understood without knowing the reasons why major nutrients never go to depletion in offshore, open-ocean waters. Dr. Martin proposes to test the hypothesis that phytoplankton productivity in the Southern Ocean varies in direct relation to iron availability. Samples to test this hypothesis were collected in the open-ocean waters of the Drake Passage in March/April 1989 and in the Ross Sea in January/February 1990. Initial results suggest that iron deficiency is the primary reason that the phytoplankton fail to bloom and use up major nutrients in offshore Southern Ocean waters. Renewed funding for one year to support our continued analysis of samples and testing of the iron deficiency hypothesis is requested in this proposal.