Spatio-temporal distribution of dissolved inorganic carbon and net community production in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas

As part of the 2002 Western Arctic Shelf–Basin Interactions (SBI) project, spatio-temporal variability of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) was employed to determine rates of net community production (NCP) for the Chukchi and western Beaufort Sea shelf and slope, and Canada Basin of the Arctic Ocean. Seasonal and spatial distributions of DIC were characterized for all water masses (e.g., mixed layer, halocline waters, Atlantic layer, and deep Arctic Ocean) of the Chukchi Sea region during field investigations in spring (5 May–15 June 2002) and summer (15 July–25 August 2002). Between these periods, high rates of phytoplankton production resulted in large drawdown of inorganic nutrients and DIC in the Polar Mixed Layer (PML) and in the shallow depths of the Upper Halocline Layer (UHL). The highest rates of NCP (∼1000–2850 mg C m−2 d−1) occurred on the shelf in the Barrow Canyon region of the Chukchi Sea and east of Barrow in the western Beaufort Sea. A total NCP rate of 8.9–17.8×1012 g for the growing season was estimated for the eastern Chukchi Sea shelf and slope region. Very low inorganic nutrient concentrations and low rates of NCP (∼<15–25 mg C m−2 d−1) estimated for the mixed layer of the adjacent Arctic Ocean basin indicate that this area is perennially oligotrophic.