Ocean binds 15% more CO₂: New study changes climate science!

Ocean binds 15% more CO₂: New study changes climate science!

New findings show that the ocean absorbs a much larger amount of carbon dioxide (CO₂) than previously thought. According to a study carried out by the GEOMAR Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research Kiel in collaboration with international partners, the ocean binds around three billion tons of net CO₂ per year. This amount exceeds the annual emissions of many industrialized countries. The study, which analyzed data from 4,082 CO₂ fluxes from 17 research trips, discovered a systematic error in previous models: They assumed that the exchange of CO₂ between air and water was symmetrical. But the reality is different.

The researchers found that breaking waves push air bubbles into the water, which then efficiently dissolve CO₂. This leads to a significant increase in CO₂ absorption. The new analysis showed that the ocean absorbs 300 to 400 million tons more carbon annually than previous estimates calculated. This corresponds to an increase of around 15 percent and further increases the discrepancy between measurement data and global climate models. This effect is particularly pronounced in the Southern Ocean, which records around half of the additional CO₂ bound around Antarctica.

Asymmetric gas exchange

Storms and strong winds play a crucial role in this process. In the winter months, when storms increase, CO₂ sequestration increases significantly, so that the proportion of the ocean surface that absorbs net CO₂ increases from 65 to 75 percent. Dr. Yuanxu Dong from GEOMAR highlights that the traditional assumption about symmetrical CO₂ fluxes is called into question by the new results. These findings could fundamentally change the view of the role of the oceans in the global carbon cycle.

The new analysis method, which directly shows asymmetric gas exchange for the first time, highlights that the ocean may have been underestimated as a CO₂ sink. The results suggest that scientific models for calculating CO₂ fluxes urgently need to be revised to take real conditions into account.

Consequences for the ecosystem

However, an increase in dissolved CO₂ in water also has far-reaching consequences. The continuous increase in CO₂ concentrations in the atmosphere leads to acidification of seawater, which endangers the living conditions for numerous marine creatures, especially corals, mussels and snails. These organisms rely on the formation of calcareous shells and could suffer from the changed conditions. It is estimated that the oceans have already absorbed around 25 percent of human-caused CO₂ emissions.

Unanswered questions include the lack of measurements under extreme wind and wave conditions and the urgent need for further research to fully understand the role of the oceans in the climate system. Given that total dissolved CO₂ in the ocean is 50 times greater than atmospheric CO₂, it is clear that small processes like air bubbles can have large impacts on the climate.

For a deeper insight into the world of the oceans and their vital functions, it is essential to continuously investigate the mechanisms underlying the carbon cycle and to adapt the upstream scientific models. This is the only way the ocean can remain effective as a buffer for human CO₂ emissions in the future.

For further details about the study and the groundbreaking findings, read here: Focus and GEOMAR.