AN ISOPYCNIC ANALYSIS OF CADMIUM DISTRIBUTIONS IN THE ATLANTIC-OCEAN

The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission's baseline study of con taminants in the Atlantic Ocean has provided some important South Atla ntic Ocean data for the assessment of the global cadmium vs. phosphate relationship. In this paper, an analysis of the cadmium vs. phosphate relationships found on various density surfaces throughout the oceans is used to address several questions related to the nature of this re lationship. The analysis shows that the cadmium distribution in interm ediate and deep waters can be described by a single global cadmium vs. phosphate relationship. Upper waters from the North Atlantic are desc ribed by a different lower slope relationship that is produced by proc esses occurring within the Atlantic Ocean basins. Input of low cadmium :phosphate ratio waters from the Antarctic via the northward flowing A ntarctic Intermediate Water is not observed. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.