Stonger glacial ocean biological pump

What is it about?

Atmospheric CO2 levels were lower during the ice age than during the pre-industrial period, but we do not understand exactly why. Most researchers think the carbon that was missing in the atmosphere was hidden somewhere in the ocean. But where exactly and why is currently not well known. Here we use, for the first time, a model that includes both carbon and nitrogen isotopes together with observations from deep sea sediments to show that the ocean's biological pump was enhanced during the ice age. The model-data comparison illustrates the complementary constraints provided by both isotopes and suggests that both circulation and increased iron fertilization may be processes that have caused the increase.

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