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A significant CO 2 sink in the tropical Atlantic Ocean associated with the Amazon River plume
Author(s) -
Körtzinger Arne
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2003gl018841
Subject(s) - plume , tropical atlantic , oceanography , sink (geography) , environmental science , amazon rainforest , carbon sink , sea surface temperature , atmospheric sciences , climatology , geology , climate change , geography , meteorology , ecology , cartography , biology
During Meteor cruise 55 a strong undersaturation of surface seawater with respect to atmospheric CO 2 was found in the Amazon River plume which is advected into the surface circulation of the tropical Atlantic. A conservative estimate of the plume‐related CO 2 sink in the tropical Atlantic yields a net air‐sea flux of 0.014 ± 0.005 Pg C yr −1 . The corresponding average CO 2 flux density of 1.35 mmol m −2 d −1 is of similar magnitude but opposite sign as found elsewhere in the slightly supersaturated tropical Atlantic illustrating the significant impact of the Amazon on the biogeochemistry of large ocean areas. The dramatic change of the CO 2 saturation state from highly supersaturated river waters to markedly undersaturated surface waters in the plume can be explained by a combination of the effects of CO 2 outgassing from river water, of mixing between river and ocean water on the CO 2 system properties, and of strong biological carbon drawdown in the plume.