A Regional Southern Ocean Carbon Budget

Isabella Rosso1, Ariane Verdy2, Matthew R Mazloff1 and Lynne D Talley3, (1)UC San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States, (2)Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States, (3)University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States
Abstract:
Air-sea CO2 fluxes in the Southern Ocean vary on a wide range of spatial and temporal scales; understanding the physical and biogeochemical mechanisms driving this variability is essential for understanding the present and future carbon cycle in the Southern Ocean. The surface distribution of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) directly impacts the air-sea CO2 flux. Our goal is to investigate the nature of the spatial and temporal (seasonal and interannual) variability in DIC and pinpoint the mechanisms that have the largest influence. The 1/3 degrees resolution Southern Ocean State Estimate physical model, coupled to a simple biogeochemical model, is used to compile an upper ocean regional carbon budget. The analysis quantifies the role of circulation, mixing, air-sea carbon flux, biological activity and dilution (precipitation) effects on the concentration of DIC calculated in several locations in the Southern Ocean, showing the different controls on air-sea carbon flux at various timescales.
Back to: Physical and Biogeochemical Processes in the Southern Ocean: Observations, State Estimation, and Modeling IV Posters