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Indications of positive feedback in climate change due to a reduction in Northern Hemisphere biomass uptake of atmospheric carbon dioxide
Author(s) -
Curran James C.,
Curran Samuel A.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
weather
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.467
H-Index - 40
eISSN - 1477-8696
pISSN - 0043-1656
DOI - 10.1002/wea.2715
Subject(s) - northern hemisphere , environmental science , carbon dioxide in earth's atmosphere , carbon dioxide , southern hemisphere , climate change , atmospheric sciences , climatology , biomass (ecology) , drop (telecommunication) , oceanography , ecology , geology , biology , telecommunications , computer science
Mauna Loa Observatory data for atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) reveal, within each calendar year, a regular seasonal fluctuation: in summer, a drop in concentration occurs as the Northern Hemisphere drives uptake of CO 2 into biomass, whereas in autumn/winter an increase in CO 2 occurs as the Northern Hemisphere releases it through biodegradation. Analysis of the magnitude of this drop allows an estimate to be made of the biomass activity each year in the Northern Hemisphere. There are indications of a small decline in such activity since around 2006. This has potentially serious climate change implications as it may be evidence of positive feedback.