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Spatio-temporal variability of CO2 fluxes in the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean
  • +3
  • Gabrielle Tavares Carvalho,
  • Luciano Ponzi Pezzi,
  • Celina Rodrigues,
  • Marcelo Freitas Santini,
  • Nathalie Lefèvre,
  • Carlos E Mejia
Gabrielle Tavares Carvalho
National Institute for Space Research

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Luciano Ponzi Pezzi
Earth Observation General Coordination (OBT), National Institute for Space Research (INPE)
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Celina Rodrigues
Unknown
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Marcelo Freitas Santini
Earth Observation General Coordination, National Institute for Space Research - OBT/INPE
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Nathalie Lefèvre
IRD-LOCEAN, Sorbonne Universités (Université Pierre et Marie Curie-CNRS-MNHN)
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Carlos E Mejia
LOCEAN, Sorbonne Université
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Abstract

The Southern Ocean (SO) plays a fundamental role in the planet’s climate system, due to its ability to absorb and redistribute heat and CO2 (an important greenhouse gas). Besides, the SO interconnects three large oceanic basins the Pacific, the Atlantic, and the Indian Oceans, and it has an important role in the nutrient distribution into these oceans. However, the SO is poorly sampled with most measurements made in austral spring and summer. The variability of the air-sea CO2 flux is estimated, as well as the role of atmospheric and oceanic variables in this variability. The CO2 fluxes are calculated by the bulk parameterization method, in the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean, from 2003 to 2022, using in situ measurements, satellites and reanalysis data set. A neural network model is built to produce maps of the partial pressure of CO2 in seawater (pCO2sea). The CO2 flux varies from -0.05 to 0.05 gC m-² month-1. The Atlantic sector of the SO is a sink of CO2 in summer and spring and becomes a source in austral winter and autumn. The CO2 absorption intensifies from 2003 to 2022 by 7.6 mmol m-²month-1, due stronger westerly winds, related to the trend of the positive phase of the Antarctic Oscillation and the extreme events of El Niño and La Niña.
30 Mar 2024Submitted to ESS Open Archive
01 Apr 2024Published in ESS Open Archive