Changes in the marine carbonate system of the western Arctic: patterns in a rescued data set

A recently recovered and compiled set of inorganic carbon data collected in the Canadian Arctic since the 1970s has revealed substantial change, as well as variability, in the carbonate system of the Beaufort Sea and Canada Basin. Whereas the role of this area as a net atmospheric carbon sink has be...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Polar Research
Main Authors: Lisa A. Miller, Robie W. Macdonald, Fiona McLaughlin, Alfonso Mucci, Michiyo Yamamoto-Kawai, Karina E. Giesbrecht, William J. Williams
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Norwegian Polar Institute 2014
Subjects:
geo
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3402/polar.v33.20577
https://doaj.org/article/bc2d6d12242a4e2f96ca2795d8e9a765
Description
Summary:A recently recovered and compiled set of inorganic carbon data collected in the Canadian Arctic since the 1970s has revealed substantial change, as well as variability, in the carbonate system of the Beaufort Sea and Canada Basin. Whereas the role of this area as a net atmospheric carbon sink has been confirmed, high pCO2 values in the upper halocline underscore the potential for CO2 outgassing as sea ice retreats and upwelling increases. In addition, increasing total inorganic carbon and decreasing alkalinity are increasing pCO2 and decreasing CaCO3 saturation states, such that undersaturation with respect to aragonite now occurs regularly in both deep waters and the upper halocline.