Elemental and biochemical composition of organic matter in the waters of the Russian sector of the Arctic Basin under the present conditions

The considered area of the Russian sector of the Arctic Basin was characterized in August–September of 2008 by the wide horizontal and vertical variability of the concentrations of dissolved and particulate organic matter (OM), as well as of its elemental and biochemical composition. The concentration ranges amounted to 51.6–434 and 2.2–18.6 μM, respectively, for the dissolved and particulate Corg; up to 1.9–30.2 μM for Norg; and up to 0.08–1.53 μM for Porg. The maximum values were characteristic for the Russian Arctic shelf. The analysis of the authors’ and published data showed that a pronounced accumulation of OM, mainly in the dissolved form, took place in the Arctic Basin within the past 12 years. The concentrations of dissolved OM were higher in the western sector of the Russian Arctic than those in the eastern sector. The main biochemical components in all the waters constituting the Arctic Ocean are carbohydrates and lipids for dissolved OM and proteins and carbohydrates for particulate matter.