Atmospheric wet deposition and changes in phytoplankton biomass in the surface ocean

The rainwater-induced change in phytoplankton biomass (FE1) and community growth rate (U1) in surface oceans is examined based on the incubation data. The results indicate that new production (NP) stimulated by atmospheric wet deposition (AWD) (i.e., AWD-NP) is strongly dependent on the nutrient concentrations and in situ phytoplankton biomass of surface waters. A positive relationship of FE1 and U1 against the amount of seawater nutrients (i.e., CE1) is found over a wide range of trophic states, which allows for estimating AWD-NP relative to standing stock and recycled oceanic production. Application of a FE1 - CE1 model shows that AWD-NP is comparable to the new production estimated by the N-15 technique in the East China Sea.