Tag: Rik Wanninkhof

State of the Climate in 2023 Released

Adapted from NOAA press release on August 22, 2024 Today, August 22, the 2023 State of the Climate report was released by the American Meteorological Society, showing Greenhouse gas concentrations, the global temperature across land and the ocean, global sea level and ocean heat content all reached record highs in 2023.  The international annual review […]

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2023 Global Carbon Budget Report Emphasizes Urgent Need to Reduce Global Emissions

According to the newest Global Carbon Budget report, global emissions continue to rise and must be significantly reduced to meet global climate targets and avoid severe and deleterious effects of climate change. In 2023, atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations are expected to reach 419.2 ppm, an estimated 51% above pre-industrial levels, with 36.8 billion metric [...]
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River Runoff Creates a Buffer Zone for Ocean Acidification in the Gulf of Mexico

A new study by scientists at NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) and Northern Gulf Institute (NGI) has revealed the alkalinity of river runoff to be a crucial factor for slowing the pace of ocean acidification along the Gulf of Mexico’s northern coast. This valuable, first-time finding may be indicative of ocean carbon chemistry patterns for other U.S. coastal areas significantly connected to rivers.

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AOML Scientist Contributes to New UNESCO Report on Ocean Carbon

In absorbing carbon dioxide (CO2), the oceans play a crucial role in regulating the climate, a role yet to be fully understood. However, the oceans’ ability to contribute to climate regulation may decline and even be reversed in the future. The oceans that are now the blue lungs of our planet, could end up contributing to global warming.

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AOML Contributes to Global Carbon Budget 2020

On December 11, 2020 researchers with the Global Carbon Project released their annual update for the Global Carbon Budget. Daily global CO2 emissions are estimated to have decreased by a maximum of about 17% by early April 2020 compared to average levels in 2019. About half of this change is due to changes in surface transport, especially road transport, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Research: Ocean Acidification Varies Around North America with Hot Spots Found in Northeast and West Coast Waters

New NOAA and partner research comparing ocean acidification around North America shows that the most vulnerable coastal waters are along the northern part of the east and west coasts. While previous research has looked at specific regions, the new study appearing in Nature Communications, is the first in-depth comparison of ocean acidification in all North American coastal ocean waters.

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AOML Contributes Ocean Carbon Observations for the Global Carbon Budget 2019

Every year the Global Carbon Project publishes an authoritative observation based Global Carbon Budget detailing the annual release of fossil fuel carbon dioxide and the uptake by the terrestrial biosphere and oceans. In 2018 the global carbon emissions were still increasing, but their rate of increase had slowed. Global carbon emissions are set to grow more slowly in 2019, with a decline in coal burning offset by strong growth in natural gas use worldwide. 

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