Assessment of carbon dioxide sink/source in the oceanic areas: the results of 1982-84 investigation. Final technical report

Technical Report · Mon Jul 01 04:00:00 EDT 1985

OSTI ID:5484711

Takahashi, T; Chipman, D W; Smethie, W Jr; Goddard, J; Trumbore, S; Mathieu, G G; Sutherland, S

The oceanic CO/sub 2/ sink/source relationships over the tropical Atlantic Ocean, the eastern North and South Pacific Ocean, and the Ross Sea were investigated. The net CO/sub 2/ flux across the air-sea interface over these areas was estimated. Measurements of the Kr-85 in atmospheric samples collected over the central Pacific along the 155/sup 0/W meridian were initiated. Based on the measurements of the difference between the pCO/sub 2/ values in the surface ocean water and the atmosphere and of the radon-222 distribution in the upper water column, we have found that the average net flux for the Atlantic equatorial belt, 10/sup 0/N-10/sup 0/S, is 1.3 moles CO/sub 2//m/sup 2/.y out of the ocean, when our measurements were made in November 1982 through February 1983. The surface water pCO/sub 2/ data obtained over the eastern North and South Pacific during the period, October 1983 through January 1984, show that the equatorial zone between 2/sup 0/N and 8/sup 0/S is an intense CO/sub 2/ source area, whereas a 10/sup 0/ wide belt coinciding with the area between the Subtropical and Antarctic Convergence Zones is a strong CO/sub 2/ sink area. The temperate gyre area located north of about 5/sup 0/N and that located between 8/sup 0/S and 35/sup 0/S are nearly in equilibrium with atmospheric CO/sub 2/. The surface water pCO/sub 2/ data obtained in the Southern Ocean during the past ten or more years suggest strongly the existence of an intense CO/sub 2/ sink zone, the Circumpolar Low pCO/sub 2/ Zone, which is about 10/sup 0/ wide in latitude and centered at about 50/sup 0/S surrounding the Antarctica Continent. The surface water of the Ross Sea is found to be a strong CO/sub 2/ sink during the period January 23 through February 12, 1984. Because of contamination problems, no reliable data for atmospheric krypton-85 have been obtained. 23 refs., 22 figs., 3 tabs.

• Research Organization: Columbia Univ., Palisades, NY (USA). Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory
• DOE Contract Number: AC02-81ER60000
• OSTI ID: 5484711
• Report Number(s): DOE/ER/60000-T2; ON: DE85016461
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
AIR-WATER INTERACTIONS
ANTARCTIC OCEAN
ATLANTIC OCEAN
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBON DIOXIDE
CARBON OXIDES
CHALCOGENIDES
DATA
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
HOURS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
INFORMATION
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
ISOMERIC TRANSITION ISOTOPES
ISOTOPES
KRYPTON 85
KRYPTON ISOTOPES
MASS TRANSFER
NUCLEI
NUMERICAL DATA
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PACIFIC OCEAN
PARTIAL PRESSURE
POLLUTION SOURCES
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
RADIOISOTOPES
SEAS
SINKS
SURFACE WATERS
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES