Seascape Carbon
Where is it, how and when did it get there and where did it come from?
Our Approach
We will identify the origins of carbon on the world’s continental shelves and explore how it accumulated and altered over time, discover where the biggest stores are found, molecularly fingerprint where they came from, and put the size of these carbon stores into context in the global carbon cycle.
Mining Existing Data Sources
We are mining existing data sources to discover where marine sediment cores have been collected in the past. These cores are kept in collections worldwide and we will reuse them for new analyses.
Conducting Oceanographic Sampling
In data-poor areas, we are conducting oceanographic sampling with equipment that extracts fresh sediment cores from the seabed. These can then be assessed for carbon content.
Creating Earth Systems Models
Using the latest advancements in the power of supercomputers, our scientists create Earth system models which can simulate interactions between the land, ocean and atmosphere. For example, our expert team reconstructed how ocean currents have changed since the end of the last ice age, to predict areas where carbon has accumulated in the ocean.
Reviewing Environmental DNA
To determine the origin of organic carbon in sediments, we are analysing the amalgamation of DNA left behind in it by different organisms. This is known as environmental DNA or ‘eDNA’.
20/06/24
Advances in understanding of air–sea exchange and cycling of greenhouse gases in the upper ocean
The air–sea exchange and oceanic cycling of greenhouse gases (GHG), including carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4), carbon monoxide (CO), and nitrogen oxides (NOx = NO + NO2), are fundamental in controlling the evolution of the Earth’s atmospheric chemistry and climate. Significant advances have been made over the last 10 years in understanding, instrumentation and methods, as well as deciphering the production and consumption pathways of GHG in the upper ocean (including the surface and subsurface ocean down to approximately 1000 m). The global ocean under current conditions is now well established as a major sink for CO2, a major source for N2O and a minor source for both…
20/06/24
A Comprehensive Analysis of Air-Sea CO2 Flux Uncertainties Constructed From Surface Ocean Data Products
Increasing anthropogenic CO2 emissions to the atmosphere are partially sequestered into the global oceans through the air-sea exchange of CO2 and its subsequent movement to depth, commonly referred to as the global ocean carbon sink. Quantifying this ocean carbon sink provides a key component for closing the global carbon budget, which is used to inform and guide policy decisions. These estimates are typically accompanied by an uncertainty budget built by selecting what are perceived as critical uncertainty components based on selective experimentation. However, there is a growing realization that these budgets are incomplete and may be underestimated, which limits their power as a…
Safeguarding Our Seas
Lessons from Lundy
