Multiple drivers of production and particle export in the western tropical North Atlantic

To assess the impacts of Amazon River discharge, Saharan dust deposition, N2‐fixation and mixed‐layer deepening on the biological carbon pump, sediment traps were moored from October 2012 to November 2013 at two sites in the western tropical North Atlantic (49°W,12°N/57°W,12°N). Particle exports interpreted along with satellite‐ and Argo‐float data show peak fluxes in biogenic silica (31 mg m**−2 d**−1) and organic carbon (25 mg m**−2 d**−1) during the fall of 2013 that were ten to five times higher than any time earlier during the year. These high export fluxes occurred in tandem with high su... Mehr ...