A Time-Series View of Changing Ocean Chemistry Due to Ocean Uptake of Anthropogenic CO2 and Ocean Acidification

Published in Oceanography, v. 27(1):126-141
Authors

Bates, N., Astor, Y., Church, M., Currie, K., Dore, J., González-Dávila, M., Lorenzoni, L., Müller-Karger, F.E., Olafsson, J. and Santa-Casiano, M.
Publication year 2014
DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.5670/oceanog.2014.16
Affiliations
  • Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences, Bermuda, Ocean and Earth Science, National Oceanography Centre, University of Southampton, UK
  • Fundacion la Salle de Ciencias Naturales, Estación de Investigaciones Marinas, Venezuela
  • Department of Oceanography, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA
  • National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, Dunedin, New Zealand
  • Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA
  •  Departmento de Quımica, Facultad de Ciencias del Mar, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
  • College of Marine Science, University of South Florida, St. Petersburg, FL, USA
  • College of Marine Science, University of South Florida, St. Petersburg, FL, USA
  • Marine Research Institute, Reykjavik,Institute of Earth Sciences, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland
  • Departmento de Quımica, Facultad de Ciencias del Mar, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain

 
IAI Program

CRN3
IAI Project CRN3094
Keywords
dissolved inorganic carbon
salinity-normalized DIC
surface seawater pCO2
anthropogenic CO2
Ocean Chemistry

Abstract

Sustained observations provide critically needed data and understanding not only about ocean warming and water cycle reorganization (e.g., salinity changes), ocean eutrophication, and ocean deoxygenation, but also about changes in ocean chemistry. As an example of changes in the global ocean carbon cycle, consistent changes in surface seawater CO2-carbonate chemistry are documented by seven independent CO2 time series that provide sustained ocean observations collected for periods from 15 to 30 years: (1) Iceland Sea, (2) Irminger Sea, (3) Bermuda Atlantic Time-series Study (BATS), (4) European Station for Time series in the Ocean at the Canary Islands (ESTOC), (5) CArbon Retention In A Colored Ocean sites in the North Atlantic (CARIACO), (6) Hawaii Ocean Time-series (HOT), and (7) Munida in the Pacific Ocean. These ocean time-series sites exhibit very consistent changes in surface ocean chemistry that reflect the impact of uptake of anthropogenic CO2 and ocean acidification. The article discusses the long-term changes in dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC), salinity-normalized DIC, and surface seawater pCO2 (partial pressure of CO2) due to the uptake of anthropogenic CO2 and its impact on the ocean&rsquos buffering capacity. In addition, we evaluate changes in seawater chemistry that are due to ocean acidification and its impact on pH and saturation states for biogenic calcium carbonate minerals.