The relationship between dissolved hydrogen and nitrogen fixation in ocean waters

Fixed nitrogen is a key nutrient involved in regulating global marine productivity and hence the global oceanic carbon cycle. Oceanic nitrogen (N2) fixation is estimated to supply 8×1012 moles N y−1 to the ocean, approximately equal to current riverine and the atmospheric inputs of fixed N, and between 50 and 100% of current estimates of oceanic denitrification. However, the spatial and temporal variability of N2 fixation remains uncertain, mostly because of the normal low resolution sampling for diazotroph distribution and fixation rates. It is well established that N2 fixation, mediated by the enzyme nitrogenase, is a source of hydrogen (H2), but the extent to which it leads to supersaturation of H2 in oceanic waters is unresolved. Here, we present simultaneous measurements of upper ocean dissolved H2 concentration (nmol L−1), and rates of N2 fixation (μmol N m−3 d−1), determined using 15N2 tracer techniques (at 7 or 15 m), on a transect from Fiji to Hawaii. We find a significant correlation (r=0.98) between dissolved H2 and rates of N2 fixation, with the greatest supersaturation of H2 and highest rates of N2 fixation being observed in the subtropical gyres at the southern (∼18°S) and northern (18°N) reaches of the transect. The lowest H2 saturation and N2 fixation were observed in the equatorial region between 8°S and 14°N. We propose that an empirical relationship between H2 supersaturations and N2 fixation measurements could be used to guide sampling for 15N fixation measurements or to aid the spatial interpolation of such measurements.