Scientists uncover link between ocean's chemical
processes and microscopic floating plants
Research sheds light on how these processes
regulate climate.
Scientists have discovered that increased levels of
ocean acidity and carbon dioxide concentrations have resulted in
unexpected changes in oceanic chemical processes. Their research
results are published in the March 7, 2007, issue of the journal
Geophysical Research Letters.
Oliver Wingenter of New Mexico Tech and his
colleagues conducted a month-long field experiment. The researchers
simulated present-day carbon dioxide concentrations and ocean acidity,
and carbon dioxide levels expected at the end of this century and the
middle of the next one. The study, funded by the National Science
Foundation (NSF), New Mexico Tech and the Comer Foundation, sheds
light on how chemical processes that occur throughout the world's
oceans help regulate Earth's climate.
Other recent scientific studies have shown that
ocean acidity is rising 100 times faster than ever before, Wingenter
said, but this study links the effect of increasing ocean acidity to
changes in phytoplankton, which themselves produce "greenhouse gases."
"Pronounced changes in some phytoplankton have been
observed during previous experiments," said Wingenter. "The
consequences for marine organisms, their ecosystems and
climate-relevant gases are unknown."
During the study, concentrations of dimethyl
sulfide (DMS) and chloroiodomethane, produced by phytoplankton in
ocean water, were measured.
"In the atmosphere, DMS is rapidly oxidized to
sulfur dioxide, which can form sulfate aerosols in the atmosphere,"
said Wingenter. These aerosols can act as nuclei for cloud formation.
Increased cloudiness could block sunlight, thereby cooling Earth. "Therefore,
additional DMS production in a higher carbon dioxide environment may
help contribute to self-regulation of Earth's climate."
"The bottom line is that carbon dioxide-loading of
the atmosphere could lead to environmental changes we have not even
begun to think about, effects beyond acidification of surface seawater
and greenhouse warming," said Donald Rice, director of NSF's Chemical
Oceanography Program.
Combining future experimental and modeling efforts
will lead to a better understanding of the feedback systems between
the atmosphere and ocean, believes Wingenter. "To predict future
climate more accurately, it's critical that we understand the outcome
of increasing ocean acidification and increasing carbon dioxide levels."
The
National Science
Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that
supports fundamental research and education across all fields of
science and engineering, with an annual budget of $5.58 billion.
NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 1,700
universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives about
40,000 competitive requests for funding, and makes nearly 10,000
new funding awards. The NSF also awards over $400 million in
professional and service contracts yearly.
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