Composition of organic matter in waters of the Barents Sea

Concentration of dissolved and suspended organic carbon in the Barents Sea decreases with increasing depth and in meridional direction from south to north. This fact is attributed to uneven supply of organic matter (OM) from different sources. Large amounts of OM are present in the water column of the Barents Sea, which is a result of high productivity of this water mass and slow decomposition of OM at low temperatures and lowered activity of microflora. Larger amount of OM reaches bottom sediments of the Barents Sea more than in seas, which have similar depth and productivity, but are located at low latitudes. Characteristic features of distribution of lipids and suspended matter in sea water are examined.巴伦支海（Barents Sea）中溶解态与悬浮态有机碳的浓度，随水深增加以及沿南至北的经向方向逐步降低。该现象归因于不同来源的有机质（organic matter, OM）供给不均衡。巴伦支海水柱中蕴藏大量有机质，这是该水团（water mass）具备较高生产力，加之低温环境下有机质分解速率缓慢、微生物区系（microflora）活性受抑制共同作用的结果。巴伦支海海底沉积物中沉积的有机质，多于水深与生产力相近但地处低纬度的其他海域。本研究对海水中脂质与悬浮物质的分布特征进行了考察分析。