The distribution and characteristics of suspended particulate matter in the Chukchi Sea

Samples taken from the Chukchi Sea （CS） during the 4th Chinese National Arctic Research Expedition, 2010, were analyzed to determine the content and composition of suspended particulate matter （SPM） to improve our understanding of the distribution, sources and control factors of the SPM there. The results show that the SPM in the water column is highest in the middle and near the bottom in the south and central-north CS, followed by that off the Alaskan coast and in Barrow Canyon. The SPM content is lowest in the central CS. Scanning electron microscope （SEM） analysis shows that the SPM in the south and central-north CS is composed mainly of diatoms, but the dominant species in those two areas are different. The SPM off the Alaskan coast and in Barrow Canyon is composed mainly of terrigenous material with few bio-skeletal clasts. The distribution of temperature and salinity and the correlation between diatom species in SPM indicate that the diatom dominant SPM in the south CS is from the Pacific Ocean via the Bering Strait in summer. The diatom dominant SPM in the central-north CS is also from Pacific water, which reaches the CS in winter. The SPM in the middle and near the bottom of the water column off the Alaskan coast and in Barrow Canyon is from Alaskan coastal water and terrigenous material transported by rivers in Alaska.