Modelling the monthly sea surface fCO2 fields in the Indian Ocean

Abstract

In order to construct monthly fields of sea surface fugacity of carbon dioxide (fCO2) on a large scale in the Indian Ocean, we use a one-dimensional model which takes into account the main physical and biogeochemical processes controlling fCO2 variations in the ocean. Physical and biogeochemical processes are constrained by the monthly variations of sea surface temperature, salinity, chlorophyll concentration, wind speed and mixed-layer depth. The model is applied to four locations in the Indian Ocean and it well predicts observed temporal variations in fCO2 at these locations. Regarding to monthly fCO2 observations, the model also well simulates the fCO2 distribution and its temporal variations along a track located between 20 ° and 50 °S with a maximal error of + 10 μatm. The model is also used to predict fCO2 for 2 ° × 2 ° grids over the entire Indian Ocean and simulates seasonal cycles that are consistent with observations. The monthly fCO2 fields derived from the model are used to estimate a global air-sea CO2 flux over the Indian Ocean basin. We estimate a net sink of 0.5 Gtyr C for the Indian Ocean (20 °N-50 °S), with the main sink located between 20 ° and 50 °S.