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Dynamics of air–sea carbon dioxide fluxes and their trends in the global context


Affiliations
1 Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781 039, India
2 Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781 039,, India
3 Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781 039, India
 

This article reviews the dynamics of CO2 fluxes in the global scenario. Most of the available techniques for sea-surface CO2 partial-pressure estimation are regional models that depend on the key regulating parameters of partial pressures. Global-scenario of fluxes reveals a contrasting trend, indicating subpolar- and polar-waters dominated by physical forcings in winter, releasing CO2 whereas a biological drawdown of atmospheric CO2 in summer. In the tropical oceans, thermal-regulation weakens biological forcing leading to influx in winter and outflux in summer. The Atlantic Ocean acts as an intense sink (–815 to –1295 mmol Cm–2 yr–1); the strong source in the Pacific-equatorial belt is balan­ced by temperate sinks. The Indian Ocean as a whole acts as a sink (–8.41  × 1015 mmol C yr–1) whereas the northwestern sub-basin acts as a source (2.04  × 1015 mmol C yr–1). The net global ocean uptake is 50  × 1015 mmol C yr–1 where the physical- and biological-forcings along with seasonality play crucial roles in the flux direction

Keywords

Carbon dioxide fluxes, earth system, global scenario, ocean–atmosphere interface, seasonal variability
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  • Dynamics of air–sea carbon dioxide fluxes and their trends in the global context

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Authors

K. Lekshmi
Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781 039, India
Rishikesh Bharti
Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781 039,, India
Chandan Mahanta
Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati 781 039, India

Abstract


This article reviews the dynamics of CO2 fluxes in the global scenario. Most of the available techniques for sea-surface CO2 partial-pressure estimation are regional models that depend on the key regulating parameters of partial pressures. Global-scenario of fluxes reveals a contrasting trend, indicating subpolar- and polar-waters dominated by physical forcings in winter, releasing CO2 whereas a biological drawdown of atmospheric CO2 in summer. In the tropical oceans, thermal-regulation weakens biological forcing leading to influx in winter and outflux in summer. The Atlantic Ocean acts as an intense sink (–815 to –1295 mmol Cm–2 yr–1); the strong source in the Pacific-equatorial belt is balan­ced by temperate sinks. The Indian Ocean as a whole acts as a sink (–8.41  × 1015 mmol C yr–1) whereas the northwestern sub-basin acts as a source (2.04  × 1015 mmol C yr–1). The net global ocean uptake is 50  × 1015 mmol C yr–1 where the physical- and biological-forcings along with seasonality play crucial roles in the flux direction

Keywords


Carbon dioxide fluxes, earth system, global scenario, ocean–atmosphere interface, seasonal variability

References





DOI: https://doi.org/10.18520/cs%2Fv121%2Fi5%2F626-640