Heat and carbon changes in the ocean as a transient response and tool for decomposing heat uptake

Whilst anthropogenic activities are significantly altering the climate, both warming the atmosphere and increasing CO2, the ocean issignificantly ameliorating both effects. This effect is so important that the transient climate response to carbon emissions (TCRE), can beformulated primarily in terms of the ocean. We show that in direct analogy to the TCRE, Anthropogenic Carbon (Canth) and temperature increases in the ocean arelinearly related, both globally and integrated over a range of scales. These ocean responses are typically of order 0.02K/mumol/kg,(equivalently ~80MJ/mol). This linear relation allows for direct translation between temperature and carbon inventory increases. Furthermore,we are far better able to decompose DIC changes into Canth increases and that of other carbon pools, than we are decomposing heatinventory changes into added and redistributed heat. By separating total DIC change into Canth and that of other carbon pools, we can therefore remove the effectof the transient response relationship between heat and carbon. This allows the production of estimates of added and redistributed heat in theocean from remaining DIC changes. Our results suggest that the variability of the transient response is predominately set by heat uptake, not carbon, and that thisvariability may be traced to individual water masses. Therefore, it may be necessary to separate this transient response regionally in orderto obtain accurate estimates of added and redistributed heat at a global scale using this technique. The Eulerian transient response is setpredominantly by isotherm heave. The part of the transient response set by climate sensitivity, analogous to a semi-Lagrangian approach, isset largely by patterns of regional heat uptake.

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Remote Sensing Methods for the Biophysical Characterization of Protected Areas Globally: Challenges and Opportunities

ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information ◽

10.3390/ijgi10060384 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (6) ◽

pp. 384

Author(s):

Javier Martínez-López ◽

Bastian Bertzky ◽

Simon Willcock ◽

Marine Robuchon ◽

María Almagro ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Remote Sensing ◽

Protected Areas ◽

Large Scale ◽

Anthropogenic Activities ◽

Global Scale ◽

Area Network ◽

Biophysical Characterization ◽

Challenges And Opportunities ◽

Scale Characterization

Protected areas (PAs) are a key strategy to reverse global biodiversity declines, but they are under increasing pressure from anthropogenic activities and concomitant effects. Thus, the heterogeneous landscapes within PAs, containing a number of different habitats and ecosystem types, are in various degrees of disturbance. Characterizing habitats and ecosystems within the global protected area network requires large-scale monitoring over long time scales. This study reviews methods for the biophysical characterization of terrestrial PAs at a global scale by means of remote sensing (RS) and provides further recommendations. To this end, we first discuss the importance of taking into account the structural and functional attributes, as well as integrating a broad spectrum of variables, to account for the different ecosystem and habitat types within PAs, considering examples at local and regional scales. We then discuss potential variables, challenges and limitations of existing global environmental stratifications, as well as the biophysical characterization of PAs, and finally offer some recommendations. Computational and interoperability issues are also discussed, as well as the potential of cloud-based platforms linked to earth observations to support large-scale characterization of PAs. Using RS to characterize PAs globally is a crucial approach to help ensure sustainable development, but it requires further work before such studies are able to inform large-scale conservation actions. This study proposes 14 recommendations in order to improve existing initiatives to biophysically characterize PAs at a global scale.

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Carbonate system properties and anthropogenic carbon inventory in the Algerian Basin during SOMBA cruise (2014): Acidification estimate

Marine Chemistry ◽

10.1016/j.marchem.2020.103783 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 221 ◽

pp. 103783 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Mehdia Asma Keraghel ◽

Ferial Louanchi ◽

Mohamed Zerrouki ◽

Malik Aït Kaci ◽

Nadira Aït-Ameur ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Carbonate System ◽

Anthropogenic Carbon ◽

System Properties ◽

Carbon Inventory

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Evaluating the carbon inventory, carbon fluxes and carbon cycles for a long-term sustainable world

Green Chemistry ◽

10.1039/c9gc00528e ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 21 (15) ◽

pp. 3994-4013 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

P. Tomkins ◽

T. E. Müller

Keyword(s):

Carbon Fluxes ◽

Valuable Resource ◽

Systematic Analysis ◽

Carbon Cycles ◽

Anthropogenic Carbon ◽

Environmental Compartments ◽

Carbon Inventory

Propositioning carbon to be seen a valuable resource, pathways towards establishing anthropogenic carbon cycles are outlined based on systematic analysis of the carbon inventory and fluxes throughout the different environmental compartments on earth.

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The Solar-Induced Chlorophyll Fluorescence Imaging Spectrometer (SIFIS) Onboard the First Terrestrial Ecosystem Carbon Inventory Satellite (TECIS-1): Specifications and Prospects

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s20030815 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (3) ◽

pp. 815 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Shanshan Du ◽

Liangyun Liu ◽

Xinjie Liu ◽

Xinwei Zhang ◽

Xianlian Gao ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Chlorophyll Fluorescence ◽

Signal To Noise Ratio ◽

Simulated Data ◽

Terrestrial Ecosystem ◽

Global Scale ◽

Terrestrial Vegetation ◽

Atmospheric Transmission ◽

Imaging Spectrometer ◽

Ecosystem Carbon ◽

Carbon Inventory

The global monitoring of solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence (SIF) using satellite-based observations provides a new way of monitoring the status of terrestrial vegetation photosynthesis on a global scale. Several global SIF products that make use of atmospheric satellite data have been successfully developed in recent decades. The Terrestrial Ecosystem Carbon Inventory Satellite (TECIS-1), the first Chinese terrestrial ecosystem carbon inventory satellite, which is due to be launched in 2021, will carry an imaging spectrometer specifically designed for SIF monitoring. Here, we use an extensive set of simulated data derived from the MODerate resolution atmospheric TRANsmission 5 (MODTRAN 5) and Soil Canopy Observation Photosynthesis and Energy (SCOPE) models to evaluate and optimize the specifications of the SIF Imaging Spectrometer (SIFIS) onboard TECIS for accurate SIF retrievals. The wide spectral range of 670−780 nm was recommended to obtain the SIF at both the red and far-red bands. The results illustrate that the combination of a spectral resolution (SR) of 0.1 nm and a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 127 performs better than an SR of 0.3 nm and SNR of 322 or an SR of 0.5 nm and SNR of 472 nm. The resulting SIF retrievals have a root-mean-squared (RMS) diff* value of 0.15 mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1 at the far-red band and 0.43 mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1 at the red band. This compares with 0.20 and 0.26 mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1 at the far-red band and 0.62 and 1.30 mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1 at the red band for the other two configurations described above. Given an SR of 0.3 nm, the increase in the SNR can also improve the SIF retrieval at both bands. If the SNR is improved to 450, the RMS diff* will be 0.17 mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1 at the far-red band and 0.47 mW m−2 sr−1 nm−1 at the red band. Therefore, the SIFIS onboard TECIS-1 will provide another set of observations dedicated to monitoring SIF at the global scale, which will benefit investigations of terrestrial vegetation photosynthesis from space.

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Desertification Control Practices in China

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12083258 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (8) ◽

pp. 3258

Author(s):

Yanli Lyu ◽

Peijun Shi ◽

Guoyi Han ◽

Lianyou Liu ◽

Lanlan Guo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Water Conservation ◽

Anthropogenic Activities ◽

Northern China ◽

Global Scale ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

Dust Storms ◽

Arid Ecosystems ◽

Desertification Control ◽

The Impact ◽

Semi Arid

Desertification is a form of land degradation principally in semi-arid and arid areas influenced by climatic and human factors. As a country plagued by extensive sandy desertification and frequent sandstorms and dust storms, China has been trying to find ways to achieve the sustainable management of desertified lands. This paper reviewed the impact of climate change and anthropogenic activities on desertified areas, and the effort, outcome, and lessons learned from desertification control in China. Although drying and warming trends and growing population pressures exist in those areas, the expanding trend of desertified land achieved an overall reversal. In the past six decades, many efforts, including government policies, forestry, and desertification control programs, combined with eco-industrialization development, have been integrated to control the desertification in northern China. Positive human intervention including afforestation, and the rehabilitation of mobile sandy land, and water conservation have facilitated the return of arid and semi-arid ecosystems to a more balanced state. China’s practices in desertification control could provide valuable knowledge for sustainable desertified land management on a global scale.

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Constraints on the transient climate response from observed global temperature and ocean heat uptake

Geophysical Research Letters ◽

10.1029/2007gl032904 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 35 (9) ◽

Cited By ~ 32

Author(s):

Reto Knutti ◽

Lorenzo Tomassini

Keyword(s):

Global Temperature ◽

Climate Response ◽

Ocean Heat Uptake ◽

Transient Climate Response ◽

Heat Uptake

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Introductory lecture: atmospheric chemistry in the Anthropocene

Faraday Discussions ◽

10.1039/c7fd00161d ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 200 ◽

pp. 11-58 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Barbara J. Finlayson-Pitts

Keyword(s):

Human Health ◽

Atmospheric Chemistry ◽

Industrial Revolution ◽

Anthropogenic Activities ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Global Scale ◽

Tropospheric Chemistry ◽

Atmospheric Composition ◽

Oxides Of Nitrogen ◽

Neonicotinoid Pesticides

The term “Anthropocene” was coined by Professor Paul Crutzen in 2000 to describe an unprecedented era in which anthropogenic activities are impacting planet Earth on a global scale. Greatly increased emissions into the atmosphere, reflecting the advent of the Industrial Revolution, have caused significant changes in both the lower and upper atmosphere. Atmospheric reactions of the anthropogenic emissions and of those with biogenic compounds have significant impacts on human health, visibility, climate and weather. Two activities that have had particularly large impacts on the troposphere are fossil fuel combustion and agriculture, both associated with a burgeoning population. Emissions are also changing due to alterations in land use. This paper describes some of the tropospheric chemistry associated with the Anthropocene, with emphasis on areas having large uncertainties. These include heterogeneous chemistry such as those of oxides of nitrogen and the neonicotinoid pesticides, reactions at liquid interfaces, organic oxidations and particle formation, the role of sulfur compounds in the Anthropocene and biogenic–anthropogenic interactions. A clear and quantitative understanding of the connections between emissions, reactions, deposition and atmospheric composition is central to developing appropriate cost-effective strategies for minimizing the impacts of anthropogenic activities. The evolving nature of emissions in the Anthropocene places atmospheric chemistry at the fulcrum of determining human health and welfare in the future.

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Dominance of the Southern Ocean in Anthropogenic Carbon and Heat Uptake in CMIP5 Models

Journal of Climate ◽

10.1175/jcli-d-14-00117.1 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 28 (2) ◽

pp. 862-886 ◽

Cited By ~ 208

Author(s):

Thomas L. Frölicher ◽

Jorge L. Sarmiento ◽

David J. Paynter ◽

John P. Dunne ◽

John P. Krasting ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Southern Ocean ◽

Carbon Storage ◽

Heat Storage ◽

Global Ocean ◽

Cmip5 Models ◽

Co2 Uptake ◽

Anthropogenic Co2 ◽

Recent Climate ◽

Heat Uptake ◽

Anthropogenic Carbon

Abstract The authors assess the uptake, transport, and storage of oceanic anthropogenic carbon and heat over the period 1861–2005 in a new set of coupled carbon–climate Earth system models conducted for the fifth phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5), with a particular focus on the Southern Ocean. Simulations show that the Southern Ocean south of 30°S, occupying 30% of global surface ocean area, accounts for 43% ± 3% (42 ± 5 Pg C) of anthropogenic CO2 and 75% ± 22% (23 ± 9 × 1022 J) of heat uptake by the ocean over the historical period. Northward transport out of the Southern Ocean is vigorous, reducing the storage to 33 ± 6 Pg anthropogenic carbon and 12 ± 7 × 1022 J heat in the region. The CMIP5 models, as a class, tend to underestimate the observation-based global anthropogenic carbon storage but simulate trends in global ocean heat storage over the last 50 years within uncertainties of observation-based estimates. CMIP5 models suggest global and Southern Ocean CO2 uptake have been largely unaffected by recent climate variability and change. Anthropogenic carbon and heat storage show a common broad-scale pattern of change, but ocean heat storage is more structured than ocean carbon storage. The results highlight the significance of the Southern Ocean for the global climate and as the region where models differ the most in representation of anthropogenic CO2 and, in particular, heat uptake.

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Global ocean storage of anthropogenic carbon

Biogeosciences Discussions ◽

10.5194/bgd-9-8931-2012 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 9 (7) ◽

pp. 8931-8988 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

S. Khatiwala ◽

T. Tanhua ◽

S. Mikaloff Fletcher ◽

M. Gerber ◽

S. C. Doney ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ocean Circulation ◽

Global Scale ◽

Global Ocean ◽

Observational Methods ◽

Robust Estimates ◽

Anthropogenic Carbon ◽

Ocean Models ◽

Biogeochemical Parameters ◽

Range Of Values ◽

Made In

Abstract. The global ocean is a significant sink for anthropogenic carbon (Cant), absorbing roughly a third of human CO2 emitted over the industrial period. Robust estimates of the magnitude and variability of the storage and distribution of Cant in the ocean are therefore important for understanding the human impact on climate. In this synthesis we review observational and model-based estimates of the storage and transport of Cant in the ocean. We pay particular attention to the uncertainties and potential biases inherent in different inference schemes. On a global scale, three data based estimates of the distribution and inventory of Cant are now available. While the inventories are found to agree within their uncertainty, there are considerable differences in the spatial distribution. We also present a review of the progress made in the application of inverse and data-assimilation techniques which combine ocean interior estimates of Cant with numerical ocean circulation models. Such methods are especially useful for estimating the air-sea flux and interior transport of Cant, quantities that are otherwise difficult to observe directly. However, the results are found to be highly dependent on modeled circulation, with the spread due to different ocean models at least as large as that from the different observational methods used to estimate Cant. Our review also highlights the importance of repeat measurements of hydrographic and biogeochemical parameters to estimate the storage of Cant on decadal timescales in the presence of the variability in circulation that is neglected by other approaches. Data-based Cant estimates provide important constraints on ocean forward models, which exhibit both broad similarities and regional errors relative to the observational fields. A compilation of inventories of Cant gives us a "best" estimate of the global ocean inventory of anthropogenic carbon in 2010 of 155 Pg C with an uncertainty of ±20%. This estimate includes a broad range of values suggesting that a combination of approaches is necessary in order to achieve a robust quantification of the ocean sink of anthropogenic CO2.

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Emergent constraints on the Southern Ocean anthropogenic carbon and heat uptake

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-5336 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Thomas Frölicher ◽

Jens Terhaar ◽

Fortunat Joos

Keyword(s):

Southern Ocean ◽

Ocean Circulation ◽

Earth System Model ◽

System Model ◽

Carbon Uptake ◽

Earth System ◽

Excess Heat ◽

The Past ◽

Heat Uptake ◽

Anthropogenic Carbon

The Southern Ocean south of 30&#176;S, occupying about a third of global surface ocean area, accounts for approximately 40% of the past anthropogenic carbon uptake and about 75% of excess heat uptake by the ocean. However, Earth system models have large difficulties in reproducing the Southern Ocean circulation, and therefore its historical and future anthropogenic carbon and excess heat uptake. In the first part of the talk, we show that there exists a tight relation across two Earth system model ensembles (CMIP5 and CMIP6) between present-day sea surface salinity in the subtropical-polar frontal zone, the formation region of mode and intermediate waters, and the past and future anthropogenic carbon uptake in the Southern Ocean. By using observations and Earth system model results, we constrain the projected cumulative Southern Ocean anthropogenic carbon uptake over 1850-2100 by the CMIP6 model ensemble to 158 &#177; 6 Pg C under the low-emissions scenario SSP1-2.6 and to 279 &#177; 14 Pg C under the high emissions scenario SSP5-8.5. Our results suggest that the Southern Ocean anthropogenic carbon sink is 14-18% larger and 46-54% less uncertain than estimated by the unconstrained CMIP6 Earth system model results. The identified constraint demonstrated the importance of the freshwater cycle for the Southern Ocean circulation and carbon cycle. In the second part of the talk, potential emergent constraints for the Southern Ocean excess heat uptake will be discussed.

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