Abstract
Measurements of the CO2 system parameters in the Mediterranean Sea are relatively scarce and not representative for all its sub-basins. High quality data collected on May 2013 during the 2013 MedSeA cruise covering the whole basin were used to provide for the first time linear relationships estimating the total alkalinity (AT) and the total dissolved inorganic carbon (CT) from salinity in each Mediterranean basin and sub-basin at different depth layers. These correlations show that a substantial quantity of alkalinity is added to the seawater during its residence time in the Mediterranean Sea, whereas the biological processes, the air-sea exchange and the high remineralization rate are responsible of the high CT concentrations in this sea. Moreover, these fits could be used to estimate the AT and CT from salinity where there are not available measurements of the carbonate system parameters.
Highlights
Aiming to understand and quantify the carbonate system in the Mediterranean Sea, several studies have been realized (e.g. [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7])
The highest salinity values were measured in the Eastern Mediterranean basin (Max. 39.18 in front of Nile Delta, at ~ 5 m), while the lowest salinities were detected at the surface of both the Western Mediterranean basin and the Strait of Gibraltar (Min. 36.29 at the surface of the Strait of Gibraltar, ~ 20 m)
High total alkalinity concentrations were recorded in the Mediterranean Sea (Mean = 2588 ± 46 μmol kg-1)
Summary
Aiming to understand and quantify the carbonate system in the Mediterranean Sea, several studies have been realized (e.g. [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7]). The present paper is based on AT and CT data measured during the 2013 MedSeA cruise which covered during the same month almost the entire Mediterranean Sea from the West to the East and from the South to the North. We present and discuss, for the first time, the AT-Salinity and CT-Salinity relationships in each Mediterranean basin and sub-basin at different depth layers. These correlations could be used to estimate the AT and CT from salinity data where there is a lack in the measurements of Journal of Water Resources and Ocean Science 2015; 4(1): 24-32 the carbonate system parameters
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