Roles of marginal seas in absorbing and storing fossil fuel CO2

Lee, Kitack; Sabine, Christopher L.; Tanhua, Toste; Kim, Tae Wook; Feely, Richard A.; Kim, Hyun Cheol

doi:10.1039/c0ee00663g

Cited by 71 publications

(49 citation statements)

References 115 publications

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“…Also, the dynamic overturning circulation in the Mediterranean Sea plays an effective role in absorbing the anthropogenic CO 2 and transports it from the surface to the interior of the basins (Hassoun et al, 2015a;Lee et al, 2011).…”

Section: Fitting C T In the Mediterranean Sea Surface Watersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climatological variations of total alkalinity and total dissolved inorganic carbon in the Mediterranean Sea surface waters

et al. 2015

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Abstract. A compilation of data from several cruises between 1998 and 2013 was used to derive polynomial fits that estimate total alkalinity (A T ) and total dissolved inorganic carbon (C T ) from measurements of salinity and temperature in the Mediterranean Sea surface waters. The optimal equations were chosen based on the 10-fold cross-validation results and revealed that second-and third-order polynomials fit the A T and C T data respectively. The A T surface fit yielded a root mean square error (RMSE) of ± 10.6 µmol kg −1 , and salinity and temperature contribute to 96 % of the variability. Furthermore, we present the first annual mean C T parameterization for the Mediterranean Sea surface waters with a RMSE of ± 14.3 µmol kg −1 . Excluding the marginal seas of the Adriatic and the Aegean, these equations can be used to estimate A T and C T in case of the lack of measurements. The identified empirical equations were applied on the 0.25 • climatologies of temperature and salinity, available from the World Ocean Atlas 2013. The 7-year averages (2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012) showed that A T and C T have similar patterns with an increasing eastward gradient. The variability is influenced by the inflow of cold Atlantic waters through the Strait of Gibraltar and by the oligotrophic and thermohaline gradient that characterize the Mediterranean Sea. The summer-winter seasonality was also mapped and showed different patterns for A T and C T . During the winter, the A T and C T concentrations were higher in the western than in the eastern basin. The opposite was observed in the summer where the eastern basin was marked by higher A T and C T concentrations than in winter. The strong evaporation that takes place in this season along with the ultra-oligotrophy of the eastern basin determines the increase of both A T and C T concentrations.

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Section: Fitting C T In the Mediterranean Sea Surface Watersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climatological variations of total alkalinity and total dissolved inorganic carbon in the Mediterranean Sea surface waters

et al. 2015

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“…On the other hand, uptake in the marginal seas, which are mainly, although not exclusively, shallow shelf areas, is less likely to be biased since CCSM does a reasonable job of simulating upper-ocean C ant . As a lower limit, we use the estimate of Lee et al (2011), scaled to 2010, of 8.6±0.6 PgC for several marginal basins including the Arctic, the Nordic seas, the Mediterranean Sea, and the East Sea (Sea of Japan) (as discussed in Sec. 2.2, these are computed using either the C * or TTD methods).…”

Section: A "Best Estimate" Of the Global Ocean Inventory In 2010mentioning

confidence: 99%

Global ocean storage of anthropogenic carbon

et al. 2013

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The global ocean is a significant sink for anthropogenic carbon (C_ant), absorbing roughly a third of human CO₂ emitted over the industrial period. Robust estimates of the magnitude and variability of the storage and distribution of C_ant in the ocean are therefore important for understanding the human impact on climate. In this synthesis we review observational and model-based estimates of the storage and transport of C_ant in the ocean. We pay particular attention to the uncertainties and potential biases inherent in different inference schemes. On a global scale, three data-based estimates of the distribution and inventory of C_ant are now available. While the inventories are found to agree within their uncertainty, there are considerable differences in the spatial distribution. We also present a review of the progress made in the application of inverse and data assimilation techniques which combine ocean interior estimates of C_ant with numerical ocean circulation models. Such methods are especially useful for estimating the air–sea flux and interior transport of C_ant, quantities that are otherwise difficult to observe directly. However, the results are found to be highly dependent on modeled circulation, with the spread due to different ocean models at least as large as that from the different observational methods used to estimate C_ant. Our review also highlights the importance of repeat measurements of hydrographic and biogeochemical parameters to estimate the storage of C_ant on decadal timescales in the presence of the variability in circulation that is neglected by other approaches. Data-based C_ant estimates provide important constraints on forward ocean models, which exhibit both broad similarities and regional errors relative to the observational fields. A compilation of inventories of C_ant gives us a "best" estimate of the global ocean inventory of anthropogenic carbon in 2010 of 155 ± 31 PgC (±20% uncertainty). This estimate includes a broad range of values, suggesting that a combination of approaches is necessary in order to achieve a robust quantification of the ocean sink of anthropogenic CO₂

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“…As a marginal sea, the Mediterranean Sea has a naturally high capacity to absorb but also buffer anthropogenic CO 2 (Ál-varez et al, 2014;Palmiéri et al, 2015). This is primarily due to the high total alkalinity (A T ) of Mediterranean waters and overturning circulation (Lee et al, 2011;Palmiéri et al, 2015;Schneider et al, 2010). In the Mediterranean Sea, the salinity-A T relationship is driven by the addition of river discharge and Black Sea input, which are generally high in A T (Copin-Montégut, 1993;Schneider et al, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Compared to the global ocean, marginal seas play a critical role in anthropogenic CO 2 storage via enhanced CO 2 uptake and export to the ocean interior (Lee et al, 2011). As a marginal sea, the Mediterranean Sea has a naturally high capacity to absorb but also buffer anthropogenic CO 2 (Ál-varez et al, 2014;Palmiéri et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coastal ocean acidification and increasing total alkalinity in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea

et al. 2017

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Abstract. Coastal time series of ocean carbonate chemistry are critical for understanding how global anthropogenic change manifests in near-shore ecosystems. Yet, they are few and have low temporal resolution. At the time series station Point B in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea, seawater was sampled weekly from 2007 through 2015, at 1 and 50 m, and analyzed for total dissolved inorganic carbon (C T ) and total alkalinity (A T ). Parameters of the carbonate system such as pH (pH T , total hydrogen ion scale) were calculated and a deconvolution analysis was performed to identify drivers of change. The rate of surface ocean acidification was −0.0028 ± 0.0003 units pH T yr −1 . This rate is larger than previously identified open-ocean trends due to rapid warming that occurred over the study period (0.072 ± 0.022 • C yr −1 ). The total pH T change over the study period was of similar magnitude as the diel pH T variability at this site. The acidification trend can be attributed to atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) forcing (59 %, 2.08 ± 0.01 ppm CO 2 yr −1 ) and warming (41 %). Similar trends were observed at 50 m but rates were generally slower. At 1 m depth, the increase in atmospheric CO 2 accounted for approximately 40 % of the observed increase in C T (2.97 ± 0.20 µmol kg −1 yr −1 ). The remaining increase in C T may have been driven by the same unidentified process that caused an increase in A T (2.08 ± 0.19 µmol kg −1 yr −1 ). Based on the analysis of monthly trends, synchronous increases in C T and A T were fastest in the spring-summer transition. The driving process of the interannual increase in A T has a seasonal and shallow component, which may indicate riverine or groundwater influence. This study exemplifies the importance of understanding changes in coastal carbonate chemistry through the lens of biogeochemical cycling at the land-sea interface. This is the first coastal acidification time series providing multiyear data at high temporal resolution. The data confirm rapid warming in the Mediterranean Sea and demonstrate coastal acidification with a synchronous increase in total alkalinity.

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Roles of marginal seas in absorbing and storing fossil fuel CO2

Cited by 71 publications

References 115 publications

Climatological variations of total alkalinity and total dissolved inorganic carbon in the Mediterranean Sea surface waters

Climatological variations of total alkalinity and total dissolved inorganic carbon in the Mediterranean Sea surface waters

Global ocean storage of anthropogenic carbon

Coastal ocean acidification and increasing total alkalinity in the northwestern Mediterranean Sea

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