Particle flux studies in the Indian Ocean

Abstract

There is scientific consensus that atmospheric carbon dioxide is a major controlling factor of the surface temperature of our planet. CO2 released into the atmosphere through fossil fuel burning and deforestation is believed to lead to global warming through the greenhouse effect. The CO2 content in the atmosphere is influenced not just by its release into the atmosphere, but also by its removal.Although it is generally accepted that oceans take up considerable amounts of CO2, the complex processes affecting this uptake are still poorly understood. Physicochemical exchange processes in the ocean remove large quantities of CO2, as do biological processes. During marine photosynthesis, microscopic plants in the oceans fix CO2 into their tissues in the form of organic matter. Part of this organic matter is oxidized back to CO2 in the mixed layer of the sea, which interacts with the atmosphere. The rest sinks down to the deep sea. The rate of this transfer to the deep sea determines the extent to which the formation of organic matter removes CO2 from the atmosphere.