Autumn semester 2007

• Main Authors: Ditte Bunk, Hansen Jacqueline Flückinger
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: 2007
• Subjects: Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.500.2642; http://www.up.ethz.ch/education/term_paper/termpaper_hs07/hansen_rev_termpaper_hs07.pdf

Since the discovery of the varying CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere, scientists have tried to find the explanation. We are still searching the full explanation, but lack of knowledge about ocean biology, biogeochemistry and the feedbacks between ocean and climate, is complicating the way to conclusions. It is important to gain knowledge about the climate changes during the last glacial/interglacial period, and the ecosystem responses associated with these changes, to be able to predict the responses to possible climate changes in the near future. We will in this study focus on the silicic acid leakage hypothesis (SALH), using it as an example of the challenge in understanding the complexity of modelling the impact of the ocean on the atmosphere. This hypothesis describes how a change in the distribution of silicic acid in the ocean could cause a decrease in the concentration of CO2 in the glacial atmosphere. Together with data from Antarctic ice cores, sediment cores and computer models, this paper will evaluate the impact of SALH on