Sea-ice contribution to the air-sea CO2 exchange in the Arctic and Southern Oceans
Although salt rejection from sea ice is a key process in deep-water formation in ice-covered seas, the concurrent rejection of CO(2) and the subsequent effect on air-sea CO(2) exchange have received little attention. We review the mechanisms by which sea ice directly and indirectly controls the air-...
| Published in: | Tellus B: Chemical and Physical Meteorology |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2011
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://portal.findresearcher.sdu.dk/da/publications/1eeed867-7eca-4f2d-bafa-513954f4a4d9 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0889.2011.00571.x |
| Summary: | Although salt rejection from sea ice is a key process in deep-water formation in ice-covered seas, the concurrent rejection of CO(2) and the subsequent effect on air-sea CO(2) exchange have received little attention. We review the mechanisms by which sea ice directly and indirectly controls the air-sea CO(2) exchange and use recent measurements of inorganic carbon compounds in bulk sea ice to estimate that oceanic CO(2) uptake during the seasonal cycle of sea-ice growth and decay in ice-covered oceanic regions equals almost half of the net atmospheric CO(2) uptake in ice-free polar seas. This sea-ice driven CO(2) uptake has not been considered so far in estimates of global oceanic CO(2) uptake. Net CO(2) uptake in sea-ice-covered oceans can be driven by; (1) rejection during sea-ice formation and sinking of CO(2)-rich brine into intermediate and abyssal oceanic water masses, (2) blocking of air-sea CO(2) exchange during winter, and (3) release of CO(2)-depleted melt water with excess total alkalinity during sea-ice decay and (4) biological CO(2) drawdown during primary production in sea ice and surface oceanic waters. |
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