Effects Of Southern Hemispheric Wind Changes On Marine Biological Production And N2 Fixation

The transport of nutrients within subantarctic mode water water (SAMW) refurbishes nutrients to ocean's thermocline fuelling a large portion of the low-latitude productivity. Changes in the location and wind intensity impact on SAMW formation and thus may affect the pathways and the timescales by which deep water nutrients return to the surface. Here we use an Earth system model of intermediate complexity (UVic2.9) to asses how, in a business as usual scenario (RCP8.5), projected southern hemispheric wind changes affect the transport and distribution of nutrients within subantarctic mode water water (SAMW). We find an intensification and vertical displacement of this nutrient conduit that leads to changes in marine primary production and to the redistribution of marine N₂ fixation in year 2100.