Biological Processes Affecting The Distribution Of Nitrogen In The Marine Environment

Nitrogen in the Marine Environment provides information pertinent to the many aspects of the nitrogen cycle. This book presents the advances in ocean productivity research, with emphasis on the role of microbes in nitrogen transformations with excursions to higher trophic levels. Organized into 24 chapters, this book begins with an overview of the abundance and distribution of the various forms of nitrogen in a number of estuaries. This text then provides a comparison of the nitrogen cycling of various ecosystems within the marine environment. Other chapters consider chemical distributions and methodology as an aid to those entering the field. This book discusses as well the enzymology of the initial steps of inorganic nitrogen assimilation. The final chapter deals with the philosophy and application of modeling as an investigative method in basic research on nitrogen dynamics in coastal and open-ocean marine environments. This book is a valuable resource for plant biochemists, microbiologists, aquatic ecologists, and bacteriologists.

This book provides essential information regarding the dynamics and rate processes of nitrogenous compounds in the sea. Topics discussed include characteristics and behavior of nitrogen at the atomic, molecular, and isotopic levels; elemental rate processes and physico-chemical and biological factors; the dynamics of nitrogen in several representative marine ecosystems; and current progress in isotope marine biogeochemistry. The book emphasizes the distribution and variation of nitrogen isotopes, which can provide a novel approach to understanding nitrogen metabolisms occurring in marine ecosystems. Nitrogen in the Sea: Forms, Abundances, and Rate Processes should be considered an indispensable reference tool for researchers and post-graduate students interested in the nitrogen cycle in aquatic ecosystems

This book aims to serve as a centralized reference document for students and researchers interested in aspects of marine nitrogen fixation. Although nitrogen is a critical element in both terrestrial and aquatic productivity, and nitrogen fixation is a key process that balances losses due to denitrification in both environments, most resources on the subject focuses on the biochemistry and microbiology of such processes and the organisms involved in the terrestrial environment on symbiosis in terrestrial systems, or on largely ecological aspects in the marine environment. This book is intended to provide an overview of N2 fixation research for marine researchers, while providing a reference on marine research for researchers in other fields, including terrestrial N2 fixation. This book bridges this knowledge gap for both specialists and non-experts, and provides an in-depth overview of the important aspects of nitrogen fixation as it relates to the marine environment. This resource will be useful for researchers in the specialized field, but also useful for scientists in other disciplines who are interested in the topic. It would provide a possible text for upper division classes or graduate seminars.

Presenting the first continental-scale assessment of reactive nitrogen in the environment, this book sets the related environmental problems in context by providing a multidisciplinary introduction to the nitrogen cycle processes. Issues of upscaling from farm plot and city to national and continental scales are addressed in detail with emphasis on opportunities for better management at local to global levels. The five key societal threats posed by reactive nitrogen are assessed, providing a framework for joined-up management of the nitrogen cycle in Europe, including the first cost-benefit analysis for different reactive nitrogen forms and future scenarios. Incorporating comprehensive maps, a handy technical synopsis and a summary for policy makers, this landmark volume is an essential reference for academic researchers across a wide range of disciplines, as well as stakeholders and policy makers. It is also a valuable tool in communicating the key environmental issues and future challenges to the wider public.

This Volume belongs to a series on Oceanography. It is designed so that it can be read on its own, or used as a supplement in oceanogrphy courses. After a brief introduction to sea-floor sediments, the book shows how the activities of marine organisms cycle nutrients and other dissolved constituents within the oceans, and influence the rates at which both solid and dissolved material is removed to sediments. It goes on to review the carbonate system and shows how sediments that come from continental areas may be transported to the deep sea, explores what sea-floor sediments have taught us about the history of the oceans, and describes the biological and chemical processes that continue long after sediments have been deposited on the deep sea-floor. * Covers the basics on the occurrence, distribution, and cycling of chemical elements in the ocean * Features full-color photographs and beautiful illustrations throughout * Reader-friendly layout, writing, and graphics * Pedagogy includes chapter summaries, chapter questions with answers and comments at the end of the book; highlighted key terms; and boxed topics and explanations * Can be used alone, as a supplement, or in combination with other Open University titles in oceanography

Marine dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a complex mixture of molecules found throughout the world's oceans. It plays a key role in the export, distribution, and sequestration of carbon in the oceanic water column, posited to be a source of atmospheric climate regulation. Biogeochemistry of Marine Dissolved Organic Matter, Second Edition, focuses on the chemical constituents of DOM and its biogeochemical, biological, and ecological significance in the global ocean, and provides a single, unique source for the references, information, and informed judgments of the community of marine biogeochemists. Presented by some of the world's leading scientists, this revised edition reports on the major advances in this area and includes new chapters covering the role of DOM in ancient ocean carbon cycles, the long term stability of marine DOM, the biophysical dynamics of DOM, fluvial DOM qualities and fate, and the Mediterranean Sea. Biogeochemistry of Marine Dissolved Organic Matter, Second Edition, is an extremely useful resource that helps people interested in the largest pool of active carbon on the planet (DOC) get a firm grounding on the general paradigms and many of the relevant references on this topic. Features up-to-date knowledge of DOM, including five new chapters The only published work to synthesize recent research on dissolved organic carbon in the Mediterranean Sea Includes chapters that address inputs from freshwater terrestrial DOM

Biological processes in the oceans play a crucial role in regulating the fluxes of many important elements such as carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, oxygen, phosphorus, and silicon. As we come to the end of the 20th century, oceanographers have increasingly focussed on how these elements are cycled within the ocean, the interdependencies of these cycles, and the effect of the cycle on the composition of the earth's atmosphere and climate. Many techniques and tools have been developed or adapted over the past decade to help in this effort. These include satellite sensors of upper ocean phytoplankton distributions, flow cytometry, molecular biological probes, sophisticated moored and shipboard instrumentation, and vastly increased numerical modeling capabilities. This volume is the result of the 37th Brookhaven Symposium in Biology, in which a wide spectrum of oceanographers, chemists, biologists, and modelers discussed the progress in understanding the role of primary producers in biogeochemical cycles. The symposium is dedicated to Dr. Richard W. Eppley, an intellectual giant in biological oceanography, who inspired a generation of scientists to delve into problems of understanding biogeochemical cycles in the sea. We gratefully acknowledge support from the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the National Science Foundation, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Electric Power Research Institute, and the Environmental Protection Agency. Special thanks to Claire Lamberti for her help in producing this volume.

The ocean has absorbed a significant portion of all human-made carbon dioxide emissions. This benefits human society by moderating the rate of climate change, but also causes unprecedented changes to ocean chemistry. Carbon dioxide taken up by the ocean decreases the pH of the water and leads to a suite of chemical changes collectively known as ocean acidification. The long term consequences of ocean acidification are not known, but are expected to result in changes to many ecosystems and the services they provide to society. Ocean Acidification: A National Strategy to Meet the Challenges of a Changing Ocean reviews the current state of knowledge, explores gaps in understanding, and identifies several key findings. Like climate change, ocean acidification is a growing global problem that will intensify with continued CO2 emissions and has the potential to change marine ecosystems and affect benefits to society. The federal government has taken positive initial steps by developing a national ocean acidification program, but more information is needed to fully understand and address the threat that ocean acidification may pose to marine ecosystems and the services they provide. In addition, a global observation network of chemical and biological sensors is needed to monitor changes in ocean conditions attributable to acidification.