MARINE DISSOLVED ORGANIC-CARBON - ARE THE OLDER VALUES CORRECT

Guided by methods comparisons involving many analysts, the measurement of dissolved organic carbon (DOG) in seawater by high temperature com bustion methods has been re-evaluated. Results from re-evaluation and the most recent publications using DOC data show deep water values gen erally similar to those reported in past decades. The similarity of th e numbers have caused some oceanographers to question whether the DOC measurements now confirm earlier ideas of little or no biological reac tivity below the immediate surface of the ocean. A careful assessment of the most recent analyses and re-assessment of earlier works shows d istinct differences between the published conclusions from the earlier works and the interpretations made with the most modern DOC data. Wit h accurate and precise modern analyses, it is possible to document sig nificant differences in the DOC pool in the ocean at concentrations im portant to microbiological and global elemental flux studies.