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[1] The loss of Arctic sea ice has accelerated in recent years. With the decline in sea ice cover, the Arctic Ocean biogeochemistry is undergoing unprecedented change. A key question about the changing Arctic Ocean biogeochemistry is concerning the impact of the shrinking sea ice cover on the particulate organic carbon (POC) export from the upper Arctic Ocean. Thus far, there are still very few direct measurements of POC export in the permanently ice-covered central Arctic Ocean. A further issue is that the magnitude of the POC export so far documented in this region remains controversial. During the ARK-XXII/2 expedition to the Arctic Ocean from 28 July to 7 October in 2007, we conducted a high-resolution study of POC export using 234 Th/ 238 U disequilibrium. Depth profiles of total 234 Th in the upper 200 m were collected at 36 stations in the central Arctic Ocean and its adjacent seas, i.e., the Barents Sea, the Kara Sea and the Laptev Sea. Samples were processed using a small-volume MnO 2 coprecipitation method with addition of a yield tracer, which resulted in one of the most precise 234 Th data sets ever collected. Thorium-234 deficit with respect to 238 U was found to be evident throughout the upper 100 m over the Arctic shelves. In comparison, 234 Th deficit was confined to the upper 25 m in the central Arctic Ocean. Below 25 m, secular equilibrium was approached between 234 Th and 238 U. The observed 234 Th deficit was generally associated with enhanced total chlorophyll concentrations, indicating that in situ production and export of biogenic particles are the main mechanism for 234 Th removal in the Arctic Ocean. Thorium-234-derived POC fluxes were determined with a steady state model and pump-normalized POC/ 234 Th ratios on total suspended particles collected at 100 m. Results showed enhanced POC export over the Arctic shelves. On average, POC export fluxes over the various Arctic shelves were 2.7 ± 1.7 mmol m −2 d −1 (the Barents Sea), 0.5 ± 0.8 mmol m −2 d −1 (the Kara Sea), and 2.9 ± 1.8 mmol m −2 d −1 (the Laptev Sea) respectively. In comparison, the central Arctic Ocean was characterized by the lowest POC export flux ever reported, 0.2 ± 1.0 mmol m −2 d −1 (1 standard deviation, n = 26). This value is very low compared to prior estimates and is also much lower than the POC export fluxes reported in other oligotrophic oceans. A ThE ratio ( 234 Th-derived POC export/primary production) of <6% in the central Arctic Ocean was estimated using the historical measurements of primary production. The low ThE ratio indicates that like other oligotrophic regimes, the central Arctic Ocean is characterized by low POC export relative to primary production, i.e., a tightly coupled food web. Our study strongly suggests that the current role of the central Arctic Ocean in C sequestration is still very limited. Meanwhile, this role might be altered because of global warming and future decline in sea ice cover.

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The first full transarctic section of 228 Ra in surface waters measured during GEOTRACES cruises PS94 and HLY1502 (2015) shows a consistent distribution with maximum activities in the transpolar drift. Activities in the central Arctic have increased from 2007 through 2011 to 2015. The increased 228 Ra input is attributed to stronger wave action on shelves resulting from a longer ice-free season. A concomitant decrease in the 228 Th/ 228 Ra ratio likely results from more rapid transit of surface waters depleted in 228 Th by scavenging over the shelf. The 228 Ra activities observed in intermediate waters (<1,500 m) in the Amundsen Basin are explained by ventilation with shelf water on a time scale of about 15-18 years, in good agreement with estimates based on SF 6 and 129 I/ 236 U. The 228 Th excess below the mixed layer up to 1,500 m depth can complement 234 Th and 210 Po as tracers of export production, after correction for the inherent excess resulting from the similarity of 228 Ra and 228 Th decay times. We show with a Th/Ra profile model that the 228 Th/ 228 Ra ratio below 1,500 m is inappropriate for this purpose because it is a delicate balance between horizontal supply of 228 Ra and vertical flux of particulate 228 Th. The accumulation of 226 Ra in the deep Makarov Basin is not associated with an accumulation of Ba and can therefore be attributed to supply from decay of 230 Th in the bottom sediment. We estimate a ventilation time of 480 years for the deep Makarov-Canada Basin, in good agreement with previous estimates using other tracers. RUTGERS VAN DER LOEFF ET AL. 4853

Air-sea gas exchange plays a key role in the cycling of greenhouse and other biogeochemically important gases. Although air-sea gas transfer is expected to change as a consequence of the rapid decline in summer Arctic sea ice cover, little is known about the effect of sea ice cover on gas exchange fluxes, especially in the marginal ice zone. During the Polarstern expedition ARK-XXVI/3 (TransArc, August/September 2011) to the central Arctic Ocean, we compared 222 Rn/ 226 Ra ratios in the upper 50 m of 14 ice-covered and 4 ice-free stations. At three of the ice-free stations, we find 222 Rn-based gas transfer coefficients in good agreement with expectation based on published relationships between gas transfer and wind speed over open water when accounting for wind history from wind reanalysis data. We hypothesize that the low gas transfer rate at the fourth station results from reduced fetch due to the proximity of the ice edge, or lateral exchange across the front at the ice edge by restratification. No significant radon deficit could be observed at the ice-covered stations. At these stations, the average gas transfer velocity was less than 0.1 m/d (97.5% confidence), compared to 0.5-2.2 m/d expected for open water. Our results show that air-sea gas exchange in an ice-covered ocean is reduced by at least an order of magnitude compared to open water. In contrast to previous studies, we show that in partially ice-covered regions, gas exchange is lower than expected based on a linear scaling to percent ice cover.