Underestimated accelerated Antarctic phytoplankton net primary production in winter over past decade from spaceborne LiDAR
The Southern Ocean's vital carbon sink is driven by phytoplankton Net Primary Production (NPP). Winter phytoplankton seed spring algal blooms and regulate nutrient cycling and ecosystem dynamics, yet Antarctic winter NPP remains poorly constrained due to limited in situ data and passive satellite sensor challenges in low-light, ice-covered conditions. Here, we leverage spaceborne LiDAR (CALIOP), analyzing 16 years of data (16,236 tracks spanning 2006-2023), to reveal a significant, previously underestimated rise in winter NPP, increasing by ~2.2 Tg C yr⁻¹ (P < 0.01). Enhanced coverage with CALIOP boosts ice-free sea observations from 12.5% to 80.7%, exposing pronounced NPP gains in the seasonal sea-ice zone, notably the Weddell and Ross Seas, driven by declining sea ice, greater light penetration, and nutrient mixing. These shifts, modulated by climate modes like the Southern Annular Mode and El Niño-Southern Oscillation, highlight the Southern Ocean's escalating role in global carbon dynamics. Integrating winter NPP into carbon models is essential to refine projections of polar carbon sequestration under climate change.
Authors
- Cédric Jamet (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6988-6506)
- Davide Dionisi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3854-521X)
- Kelsey Bisson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4230-3467)
- Delu Pan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8438-2848)
- Yongxiang Hu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8526-108X)
- Paolo Di Girolamo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7420-3164)
- Zhenhua Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9818-5346)
- Siqi Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0531-7528)
- Peng Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0635-9220)
Institutions
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Oregon State University (US)
- Langley Research Center (US)
- University of Basilicata (IT)
- Ministry of Natural Resources (CN)
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou) (CN)
- Second Institute of Oceanography (CN)
- Institute of Marine Engineering (IT)
- Laboratoire d’Océanologie et de Géosciences (FR)
- Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (FR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2025-12-12
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-66275-w
- Primary Topic
- Marine and coastal ecosystems
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- National Key Research and Development Program of China
- Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province