Importance of the Southern Ocean absorbing CO2!

Today we are going to talk about the importance of the Southern Ocean absorbing CO2!

Observations from research aircraft show that the Southern Ocean absorbs much more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases, confirming that it is a very strong carbon sink and an important buffer for the effects of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions, according to a new NASA – National Aeronautics and Space Administration supported the study.

Recent research had raised uncertainty about just how much atmospheric CO2 these icy waters absorb. The studies relied on measurements of ocean acidity – which increases when ocean water absorbs CO2 – taken by instruments that float in the ocean! This new study, published in Science, used aircraft observations of CO2 to show that the Southern ocean is a stronger carbon sink!

Aircraft observations were collected for nearly a decade from, 2009 to 2018 during 3 field 
experiments including NASA – National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Astrospheric Tomography Mission (ATOM) in 2016!

Please do make the earth a better place to live for future generations to come!!!

Source: NASA Earth Science News

By Sri Nihal Tammana