Title :
First results from shipboard atmospheric O2 and CO2 measurements over the North Atlantic Ocean
Author :
Patecki, M. ; Manning, A.C.
Author_Institution :
East Anglia Univ., Norwich
Abstract :
High precision atmospheric oxygen (O2) measurements are a relatively new and powerful tool for studying the global carbon cycle. Despite the development of several techniques for achieving these measurements over the past two decades, the quantification of small changes (ppm-level) in the background concentration of O2 (21%) still remains very challenging. We have built a measuring system capable of detecting ppm-level changes in atmospheric O2 that is suitable for continuous, automated, shipboard use. We tested this system under field conditions on a research cruise in the North Atlantic Ocean between Newfoundland and Iceland in summer 2006, collecting the first-ever atmospheric O2 measurements over the Atlantic Ocean. We present these data, showing changes in atmospheric O2 and CO2 concentrations that are a result of changing air mass or water mass origins which incorporate influences from land/marine biospheric processes, ocean mixing, and temperature-induced solubility changes.
Keywords :
atmospheric boundary layer; atmospheric composition; carbon compounds; oceanographic regions; oxygen; AD 2006; CO2; Iceland; Newfoundland; North Atlantic Ocean; O2; air mass; air-sea gas exchange; atmospheric CO2 concentration; atmospheric O2 concentration; carbon dioxide measurement; global carbon cycle; land-marine biospheric process; ocean mixing; shipboard atmospheric oxygen measurement; temperature-induced solubility changes; water mass; Atmospheric measurements; Chemicals; Marine vehicles; Ocean temperature; Production; Sampling methods; Sea measurements; Sea surface; System testing; Temperature measurement; Air-sea gas exchange; North Atlantic Ocean; atmospheric oxygen measurements; ocean carbon cycle;
Conference_Titel :
OCEANS 2007 - Europe
Conference_Location :
Aberdeen
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4244-0635-7
Electronic_ISBN :
978-1-4244-0635-7
DOI :
10.1109/OCEANSE.2007.4302351