Typhoon-Induced Biogeochemical Dynamics in Coastal Waters

Typhoons and tropical cyclones exert profound influences on coastal marine environments by enhancing vertical mixing, resuspending sediments and delivering terrestrial material into the nearshore zone. The intense winds and low atmospheric pressure associated with these storms drive upwelling and Ekman pumping, which bring nutrient-rich deep water into the sunlit surface layer. Such processes stimulate phytoplankton blooms, alter the distribution of dissolved inorganic nutrients and shift oxygen dynamics through enhanced gas exchange and biological respiration. Concurrently, strong currents and wave action erode seabed sediments, increasing turbidity and redistributing organic carbon and particulate matter. These biogeochemical responses vary regionally according to bathymetry, riverine inputs and storm intensity, but collectively they can accelerate short-term primary production, modify carbon cycling and leave persistent imprints in sediment records. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for predicting coastal ecosystem resilience, informing fisheries management and assessing how extreme weather events modulate global carbon and nutrient budgets.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent field observations during a natural wind storm have been compared with data from an adjacent bottom-trawling experiment to isolate the biogeochemical signatures of storm-induced mixing versus anthropogenic disturbance. Results demonstrate that storm-driven erosion generated turbidity peaks higher than those caused by trawling, yet coincided with increased oxygen concentrations due to wave-induced reaeration. Nutrient profiles showed a decline in silicate and a rise in phosphate following the storm, accompanied by reductions in salinity and enhanced fluorescence. In contrast, trawling yielded deeper seabed erosion and intermittent oxygen depletion near the bed, underscoring fundamental differences between episodic storms and chronic human impacts on coastal biogeochemistry.

Typhoon-Induced Biogeochemical Dynamics in Coastal Waters publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in typhoon-induced biogeochemical dynamics in coastal waters across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Upwelling: The upward movement of deep, nutrient-rich water into surface layers, driven by wind or pressure gradients.

Ekman pumping: Wind-induced transport of surface water that causes divergence or convergence, resulting in vertical movement of deeper water.

Total Suspended Sediment (TSS): The concentration of particulate matter suspended in the water column, often elevated by resuspension.

Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a): A pigment found in phytoplankton used as a proxy for estimating primary production and biomass.

Euphotic zone: The upper layer of the ocean where sufficient light penetrates to support photosynthesis.

References

1. Biogeochemical dynamics in a marine storm demonstrates differences between natural and anthropogenic impacts. Scientific Reports (2024).
2. Extreme South Pacific Phytoplankton Blooms Induced by Tropical Cyclones. Geophysical Research Letters (2023).
3. Spatiotemporal Distributions of Ocean Color Elements in Response to Tropical Cyclone: A Case Study of Typhoon Mangkhut (2018) Past over the Northern South China Sea. Remote Sensing (2021).