Prefatory Note for the Special Issue: Marine Geochemistry of Trace Elements and Their Isotopes
2023 Volume 57 Issue 2 Pages 31-34
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2023 Volume 57 Issue 2 Pages 31-34
Recent advances in clean technique and highly sensitive analytical technique made it possible to analyze trace elements and their isotopes (TEIs) in open ocean waters. Now, it is realized that many trace metals are important for marine primary production, and some trace element isotopes are useful as tracers for marine biogeochemical cycles. To accumulate high-quality data of TEIs in the ocean at global scale, International Study of the Marine Biogeochemical Cycles of Trace Elements and Their Isotopes (GEOTRACES) started in 2000s. Three of intermediate data products have been already published, and the accomplishments of GEOTRACES are highly evaluated now. In this special issue, Japanese Geotracers reviewed these recent progresses in marine geochemistry of TEIs and indicated remaining problems in this area. We hope this special issue will deepen our present understanding of marine biogeochemical cycles of TEIs.
