Mass deposition of microbes from wildfire smoke to the sea surface microlayer

Abstract Microbes in the sea surface microlayer (SML) are key to connecting the ocean and the atmosphere, affecting the exchange of matter, momentum, and heat at the interface. However, their sources have never been quantified systematically. Seawater has long been deemed their major source, whereas atmospheric deposition is regarded as trivial or merely providing additional nutrients. Here, combining atmospheric observations and quantitative budget analyses, we show that during the Indonesian peatland wildfire events the smoke can directly deposit abundant microbes into the SML, which can be comparable to the estimated supply from seawater and potentially diversify the microbial community of the SML. This land–air–ocean interaction is relevant for global climate, as it may induce previously unknown effects on the air–sea interactions, especially in an increasingly warming future with more intensifying wildfires.

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Publication Details

Journal
Limnology and Oceanography
Published
2025-04-26
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.70078
Citations
4
Primary Topic
Atmospheric chemistry and aerosols
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
5.20

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article

Mass deposition of microbes from wildfire smoke to the sea surface microlayer

Cong‐Qiang Liu, Rui Jin, Senchao Lai, Kimitaka Kawamura et al.
4 citations
Limnology and Oceanography
Atmospheric chemistry and aerosols
5.20
article

Mass deposition of microbes from wildfire smoke to the sea surface microlayer

Cong‐Qiang Liu, Rui Jin, Senchao Lai, Kimitaka Kawamura, Chaoqun Ma, Yele Sun, Lianfang Wei, Yingyi Zhang, Hang Su, Jialei Zhu, Meinrat O. Andreae, Siyao Yue, Linjie Li, Yafang Cheng, Zifa Wang, Shan Wang, Ping Li, Meng Li, Pingqing Fu, Lishan Zheng, Tianli Song
article en
4 citations

Abstract

Abstract Microbes in the sea surface microlayer (SML) are key to connecting the ocean and the atmosphere, affecting the exchange of matter, momentum, and heat at the interface. However, their sources have never been quantified systematically. Seawater has long been deemed their major source, whereas atmospheric deposition is regarded as trivial or merely providing additional nutrients. Here, combining atmospheric observations and quantitative budget analyses, we show that during the Indonesian peatland wildfire events the smoke can directly deposit abundant microbes into the SML, which can be comparable to the estimated supply from seawater and potentially diversify the microbial community of the SML. This land–air–ocean interaction is relevant for global climate, as it may induce previously unknown effects on the air–sea interactions, especially in an increasingly warming future with more intensifying wildfires.

Limnology and OceanographyVol. 70(6)
Scripps Institution of Oceanography (US), Tianjin University (CN), Chubu University (JP), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), King Saud University (SA), University of California San Diego (US), Max Planck Institute for Chemistry (DE), Institute of Atmospheric Physics (CN), University of Gothenburg (SE), South China University of Technology (CN)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Openalex Percentile: Top 5%
Atmospheric chemistry and aerosols
5.20
DOISourceOpenAlex
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