Constraining Southern Ocean CO2 Flux Uncertainty Using Uncrewed Surface
Vehicle Observations
Abstract
Remote, harsh conditions of the Southern Ocean challenge our ability to
observe the region’s influence on the climate system. Southern Ocean
air-sea CO2 flux estimates have significant uncertainty due to the
reliance on limited ship-dependent observations in combination with
satellite-based and interpolated data products. We utilize a new
approach, making direct measurements of air-sea CO2, wind speed, and
surface ocean properties on an Uncrewed Surface Vehicle (USV). In 2019
the USV completed the first autonomous circumnavigation of Antarctica
providing hourly CO2 flux estimates. Using this unique data set to
constrain potential error in different measurements and propagate those
through the CO2 flux calculation, we find that different wind speed
products and sampling frequencies have the largest impact on CO2 flux
estimates with biases that range from -4% to +20%. These biases and
poorly-constrained interannual variability could account for
discrepancies between different approaches to estimating Southern Ocean
CO2 uptake.