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Monitoring and assessment of ocean acidification in the Arctic Ocean-A scoping paper

Open-File Report 2010-1227
By: , , , and 
https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20101227

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Abstract

Carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere is absorbed at the ocean surface by reacting with seawater to form a weak, naturally occurring acid called carbonic acid. As atmospheric carbon dioxide increases, the concentration of carbonic acid in seawater also increases, causing a decrease in ocean pH and carbonate mineral saturation states, a process known as ocean acidification. The oceans have absorbed approximately 525 billion tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, or about one-quarter to one-third of the anthropogenic carbon emissions released since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Global surveys of ocean chemistry have revealed that seawater pH has decreased by about 0.1 units (from a pH of 8.2 to 8.1) since the 1700s due to absorption of carbon dioxide (Raven and others, 2005). Modeling studies, based on Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) CO2 emission scenarios, predict that atmospheric carbon dioxide levels could reach more than 500 parts per million (ppm) by the middle of this century and 800 ppm by the year 2100, causing an additional decrease in surface water pH of 0.3 pH units. Ocean acidification is a global threat and is already having profound and deleterious effects on the geology, biology, chemistry, and socioeconomic resources of coastal and marine habitats. The polar and sub-polar seas have been identified as the bellwethers for global ocean acidification.

Suggested Citation

Robbins, L.L., Yates, K.K., Feely, R., Fabry, V., 2010, Monitoring and assessment of ocean acidification in the Arctic Ocean-A scoping paper: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2010-1227, iv, 4 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20101227.

ISSN: 2331-1258 (online)

Publication type Report
Publication Subtype USGS Numbered Series
Title Monitoring and assessment of ocean acidification in the Arctic Ocean-A scoping paper
Series title Open-File Report
Series number 2010-1227
DOI 10.3133/ofr20101227
Year Published 2010
Language ENGLISH
Publisher U.S. Geological Survey
Contributing office(s) St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center
Description iv, 4 p.
Additional Online Files (Y/N) N
Additional publication details