The Global Ocean Flux Study (GOFS) is planning an expedition to study the phytoplankton bloom in the eastern North Atlantic Ocean in the spring of 1989. This study will contribute to this effort by constraining the 02 balance at the 47o N process-oriented study station. The main experimental objective is to determine net and gross rates of 02 production in vitro during the spring bloom. From this work, together with selected studies of the distribution and isotopic composition of 02 in the upper water column, net, gross, and new production of 02 will determined. These results, together with those of other investigators, will constrain the mass balance of 02 and carbon during the spring bloom. They will also lead towards an understanding of the biological processes governing gross and new production.
