Systematic study of the impact of fresh water fluxes on the glacial carbon cycle
During glacial periods, atmospheric CO 2 concentration increases and decreases by around 15 ppm. At the same time, the climate changes gradually in Antarctica. Such climate changes can be simulated in models when the AMOC (Atlantic Meridional Oceanic Circulation) is weakened by adding fresh water to...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:9139dc6ddedc4e82806db70f4397e60b 2023-05-15T13:59:54+02:00 Systematic study of the impact of fresh water fluxes on the glacial carbon cycle N. Bouttes D. M. Roche D. Paillard 2012-03-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-8-589-2012 https://doaj.org/article/9139dc6ddedc4e82806db70f4397e60b EN eng Copernicus Publications http://www.clim-past.net/8/589/2012/cp-8-589-2012.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1814-9324 https://doaj.org/toc/1814-9332 doi:10.5194/cp-8-589-2012 1814-9324 1814-9332 https://doaj.org/article/9139dc6ddedc4e82806db70f4397e60b Climate of the Past, Vol 8, Iss 2, Pp 589-607 (2012) Environmental pollution TD172-193.5 Environmental protection TD169-171.8 Environmental sciences GE1-350 article 2012 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-8-589-2012 2022-12-31T11:51:19Z During glacial periods, atmospheric CO 2 concentration increases and decreases by around 15 ppm. At the same time, the climate changes gradually in Antarctica. Such climate changes can be simulated in models when the AMOC (Atlantic Meridional Oceanic Circulation) is weakened by adding fresh water to the North Atlantic. The impact on the carbon cycle is less straightforward, and previous studies give opposite results. Because the models and the fresh water fluxes were different in these studies, it prevents any direct comparison and hinders finding whether the discrepancies arise from using different models or different fresh water fluxes. In this study we use the CLIMBER-2 coupled climate carbon model to explore the impact of different fresh water fluxes. In both preindustrial and glacial states, the addition of fresh water and the resulting slow-down of the AMOC lead to an uptake of carbon by the ocean and a release by the terrestrial biosphere. The duration, shape and amplitude of the fresh water flux all have an impact on the change of atmospheric CO 2 because they modulate the change of the AMOC. The maximum CO 2 change linearly depends on the time integral of the AMOC change. The different duration, amplitude, and shape of the fresh water flux cannot explain the opposite evolution of ocean and vegetation carbon inventory in different models. The different CO 2 evolution thus depends on the AMOC response to the addition of fresh water and the resulting climatic change, which are both model dependent. In CLIMBER-2, the rise of CO 2 recorded in ice cores during abrupt events can be simulated under glacial conditions, especially when the sinking of brines in the Southern Ocean is taken into account. The addition of fresh water in the Southern Hemisphere leads to a decline of CO 2 , contrary to the addition of fresh water in the Northern Hemisphere. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctica North Atlantic Southern Ocean Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Southern Ocean Climate of the Past 8 2 589 607 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Environmental pollution TD172-193.5 Environmental protection TD169-171.8 Environmental sciences GE1-350 |
spellingShingle |
Environmental pollution TD172-193.5 Environmental protection TD169-171.8 Environmental sciences GE1-350 N. Bouttes D. M. Roche D. Paillard Systematic study of the impact of fresh water fluxes on the glacial carbon cycle |
topic_facet |
Environmental pollution TD172-193.5 Environmental protection TD169-171.8 Environmental sciences GE1-350 |
description |
During glacial periods, atmospheric CO 2 concentration increases and decreases by around 15 ppm. At the same time, the climate changes gradually in Antarctica. Such climate changes can be simulated in models when the AMOC (Atlantic Meridional Oceanic Circulation) is weakened by adding fresh water to the North Atlantic. The impact on the carbon cycle is less straightforward, and previous studies give opposite results. Because the models and the fresh water fluxes were different in these studies, it prevents any direct comparison and hinders finding whether the discrepancies arise from using different models or different fresh water fluxes. In this study we use the CLIMBER-2 coupled climate carbon model to explore the impact of different fresh water fluxes. In both preindustrial and glacial states, the addition of fresh water and the resulting slow-down of the AMOC lead to an uptake of carbon by the ocean and a release by the terrestrial biosphere. The duration, shape and amplitude of the fresh water flux all have an impact on the change of atmospheric CO 2 because they modulate the change of the AMOC. The maximum CO 2 change linearly depends on the time integral of the AMOC change. The different duration, amplitude, and shape of the fresh water flux cannot explain the opposite evolution of ocean and vegetation carbon inventory in different models. The different CO 2 evolution thus depends on the AMOC response to the addition of fresh water and the resulting climatic change, which are both model dependent. In CLIMBER-2, the rise of CO 2 recorded in ice cores during abrupt events can be simulated under glacial conditions, especially when the sinking of brines in the Southern Ocean is taken into account. The addition of fresh water in the Southern Hemisphere leads to a decline of CO 2 , contrary to the addition of fresh water in the Northern Hemisphere. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
N. Bouttes D. M. Roche D. Paillard |
author_facet |
N. Bouttes D. M. Roche D. Paillard |
author_sort |
N. Bouttes |
title |
Systematic study of the impact of fresh water fluxes on the glacial carbon cycle |
title_short |
Systematic study of the impact of fresh water fluxes on the glacial carbon cycle |
title_full |
Systematic study of the impact of fresh water fluxes on the glacial carbon cycle |
title_fullStr |
Systematic study of the impact of fresh water fluxes on the glacial carbon cycle |
title_full_unstemmed |
Systematic study of the impact of fresh water fluxes on the glacial carbon cycle |
title_sort |
systematic study of the impact of fresh water fluxes on the glacial carbon cycle |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2012 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-8-589-2012 https://doaj.org/article/9139dc6ddedc4e82806db70f4397e60b |
geographic |
Southern Ocean |
geographic_facet |
Southern Ocean |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctica North Atlantic Southern Ocean |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctica North Atlantic Southern Ocean |
op_source |
Climate of the Past, Vol 8, Iss 2, Pp 589-607 (2012) |
op_relation |
http://www.clim-past.net/8/589/2012/cp-8-589-2012.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1814-9324 https://doaj.org/toc/1814-9332 doi:10.5194/cp-8-589-2012 1814-9324 1814-9332 https://doaj.org/article/9139dc6ddedc4e82806db70f4397e60b |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-8-589-2012 |
container_title |
Climate of the Past |
container_volume |
8 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
589 |
op_container_end_page |
607 |
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1766268833370210304 |