Understanding and Assessing Global Ocean Carbon Sequestration
James K. Bishop
Research Objectives
Over the past century and a half, atmospheric CO2 concentrations
have risen by over 30% from pre-industrial levels. The increase
is approximately half the cumulative emission as a result of human
activity, with the oceans acting as a major repository for the anthropogenic
carbon. This rapid increase in the atmospheric CO2 has
contributed in some measure to the recent warming trends observed
worldwide. Understanding the processes that maintain and change
the carbon cycle, and developing strategies for managing carbon
fluxes and inventories, are national priorities.
The following questions are critical:
- How does the ocean naturally sequester carbon? How will this
change in the future?
- Could purposeful enhancement of carbon storage in the ocean
be an effective way to manage CO2 in the atmosphere,
and are such actions safe?
Biological transformations of carbon in the sea have an important
impact on the atmosphere. Marine phytoplankton, whose biomass
is renewed entirely every 1 to 2 weeks, consume CO2 through
photosynthesis at a rate of ~50 Pg C yr-1 and transport
~10 Pg C yr-1 from the surface layer to the deep sea.
These fast biological and equally fast physical processes alter
the CO2 distribution in the surface ocean and atmosphere.
If we were to disable the "biological carbon pump," then levels
of atmospheric CO2 would rise by 30%. The challenge is
to follow such fast processes on a global scale.
To continue reading more about this project, view the
1-page pdf here.
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 Carbon Explorer just prior to deployment in the North Atlantic ocean by Jim Bishop. UC Berkeley Graduate student Pheobe Lam assisted. The fully robotic float measures temparture, salinity, pressure, particulate organic carbon biomass, light scattering, and carbon sedimentation during its daily transits from kilometer depths to the surface. Data are transmitted to shore in real time for the greater part of one year.
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