Antarctic glaciers export carbon-stabilised iron(II)-rich particles to the surface Southern Ocean

Rhiannon L. Jones (), Jon R. Hawkings, Michael P. Meredith, Maeve C. Lohan, Oliver W. Moore, Robert M. Sherrell, Jessica N. Fitzsimmons, Majid Kazemian, Tohru Araki, Burkhard Kaulich and Amber L. Annett
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Rhiannon L. Jones: British Antarctic Survey
Jon R. Hawkings: University of Pennsylvania
Michael P. Meredith: British Antarctic Survey
Maeve C. Lohan: University of Southampton
Oliver W. Moore: University of York
Robert M. Sherrell: Rutgers University
Jessica N. Fitzsimmons: Rutgers University
Majid Kazemian: Harwell Science & Innovation Campus
Tohru Araki: Institute for Molecular Science
Burkhard Kaulich: Harwell Science & Innovation Campus
Amber L. Annett: British Antarctic Survey

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract Iron is an essential micronutrient for phytoplankton and plays an integral role in the marine carbon cycle. The supply and bioavailability of iron are therefore important modulators of climate over glacial-interglacial cycles. Inputs of iron from the Antarctic continental shelf alleviate iron limitation in the Southern Ocean, driving hotspots of productivity. Glacial meltwater fluxes can deliver high volumes of particulate iron. Here, we show that glacier meltwater provides particles rich in iron(II) to the Antarctic shelf surface ocean. Particulate iron(II) is understood to be more bioavailable to phytoplankton, but less stable in oxic seawater, than iron(III). Using x-ray microscopy, we demonstrate co-occurrence of iron and organic carbon-rich phases, suggesting that organic carbon retards the oxidation of potentially-bioavailable iron(II) in oxic seawater. Accelerating meltwater fluxes may provide an increasingly important source of bioavailable iron(II)-rich particles to the Antarctic surface ocean, with implications for the Southern Ocean carbon pump and ecosystem productivity.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-59981-y

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