Articles tagged with Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide
By 2040, parts of Washington State could lose up to a third of their carbon stores due to increasing wildfire risk. This would significantly impact the region's ability to act as carbon sinks and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions.
A study by Georgia Institute of Technology researchers shows that extracting carbon dioxide directly from the air using newly-developed adsorbent materials is economically feasible. The technique could be used to supplement capture of CO2 from power plant flue gases, with estimated costs of $100 per ton. The method has the potential to...
A team led by USC scientists has identified long-hypothesized vitamin B deficient zones in the ocean using a new analytical technique. These 'vitamin deserts' may inhibit phytoplankton growth and affect the ocean's food chain. The discovery could lead to complex interactions among microbial populations.
Forest soils lose more carbon under elevated CO2 levels, contrary to previous assumptions. The IU-led research reveals that microorganisms play a key role in this process.
Researchers at Kansas State University are studying the geochemical effectiveness of trapping and storing carbon dioxide in the Arbuckle aquifer, a porous rock layer that could permanently store CO2. The study aims to understand how to sequester carbon dioxide and keep it from reaching the atmosphere.
A climate model reveals that pre-industrial emissions from land use changes account for 9% of the increase in global mean temperature since the industrial revolution. Historical CO2 emissions from China and India, largely driven by population growth, continue to impact the atmosphere and climate today.
Research from Carnegie Institution shows pre-industrial era's clearing of land and forests contribute to atmospheric carbon dioxide, affecting global warming. Accounting for these emissions shifts attribution of global temperature from industrialized nations to developing nations.
A recent study analyzed respiration rates across aquatic and land ecosystems, revealing that warmer climates may lead to more CO2 release from marine and freshwater environments. This finding suggests a stronger response of aquatic ecosystems to temperature changes, potentially increasing their carbon dioxide emissions.
Research from the University of Exeter suggests that adopting a diet with lower meat consumption could significantly reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. The study found that increasing agricultural efficiency, especially in livestock production, could help achieve this goal by making better use of resources and reducing waste.
A new study by researchers at BYU, Duke, and USDA finds that soil interaction with plants controls how ecosystems respond to rising CO2 levels. The study highlights the importance of soils in predicting the future of the Earth's atmosphere.
A new study by UCI researchers found that heating soil in Wisconsin and North Carolina woodlands can increase carbon dioxide release into the atmosphere up to eight times. The study suggests that soils could accelerate global warming through a vicious cycle, where man-made warming releases carbon from soils to the atmosphere.
A recent study has found that sea temperatures were warmer and less sensitive to CO2 levels 5-13 million years ago. The research team used an organic compound as a 'fossil thermometer' to analyze ocean temperatures alongside carbon dioxide reconstructions, providing evidence of a transition in the Earth's climate system.
Researchers found that about 12-5 million years ago climate was decoupled from atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations. The climate of modern times more readily responds to changing carbon dioxide levels.
A materials scientist at Michigan Technological University has discovered an exothermic reaction that converts carbon dioxide into solid carbon nitride and lithium cyanamide, a precursor to fertilizers. The process releases significant energy, potentially mitigating climate change by utilizing CO2 instead of fossil fuels.
A University of Colorado Boulder-led team developed a new monitoring system to analyze atmospheric gas emissions, separating CO2 from fossil fuels from biological sources. The method uses carbon-14 to estimate emission rates of gases impacting climate change, air quality, and ozone recovery.
A new study reveals that genetically improved loblolly pines have increased carbon uptake and stem-wood production, with 17% and 13% increases respectively, over a 40-year period. This enhancement of the trees' ability to act as carbon sinks is expected to mitigate climate change.
Research by Oregon State University scientists has found a definitive link between ocean acidification and oyster larval failure, with elevated CO2 levels inhibiting shell development and growth. The study's findings have significant implications for the $100 million annual commercial oyster production industry on the West Coast.
Scientists compiled core samples from around the world to reconstruct global temperature and find a strong correlation between rising CO2 and warming at the end of the ice age. CO2 trails Antarctic warming but precedes global temperature change, supporting its role in climate change.
Scientists link ancient global warming events to thawing permafrost, revealing a significant source of carbon in Polar Regions. This discovery highlights the vulnerability of frozen soils to climate warming and the potential for a positive feedback loop amplifying future warming.
Researchers have found evidence that smaller hyperthermal events, which occurred more than 50 million years ago, had a similar origin to the larger Pelaeocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM). The study confirms that these events were atmospheric and global, rather than just oceanic processes.
Researchers found that carbon dioxide accumulated in deep ocean during Ice Ages, causing atmospheric concentration to drop. Stored CO2 was later transported back to sea surface through changing ocean circulation and emitted into atmosphere.
A new study by Rice University scientists reveals that cooking temperature determines the effectiveness of 'biochar' as a soil additive. Biochar can improve hydrology and make more nutrients available to plants when produced at high temperatures.
Researchers found iron oxides remove one fifth of organic carbon deposited on ocean floor, trapping it and removing CO2 from atmosphere. Decrease in dissolved oxygen levels threatens coastal ecosystems' ability to extract carbon dioxide.
Carbon capture and storage technology could prevent billions of tons of CO2 emissions each year, but high costs and concerns over safety and permanence hinder its adoption. Stanford scientist Sally Benson emphasizes the need for global scale and monitoring to ensure secure storage.
Phytoplankton, tiny single-celled algae, act as a natural sponge for carbon dioxide and are critical to the global carbon cycle. Research by Canada Research Chair Maria Maldonado has shown that phytoplankton adapt to iron limitation by increasing copper uptake, leading to more efficient carbon absorption.
Researchers at Oregon State University say ocean microbes are shifting in response to warming oceans, but the impact on carbon sequestration and global warming is uncertain. Microbial communities play a crucial role in pumping carbon out of the atmosphere, with nearly half of photosynthesis attributed to plankton.
Plant steroid hormones brassinosteroids play a crucial role in regulating the number and distribution of stomata on leaves. Research found that brassinosteroids inhibit the protein BIN2, allowing stomata formation when present and inhibiting it when absent.
The arrival of the first land plants 470 million years ago led to a series of 'ice ages' as they extracted minerals from rocks, causing chemical weathering and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This cooling effect would have been around five degrees Celsius.
Scientists analyze carbon isotopic composition in ancient rocks to understand conditions prior to the Marinoan glaciation, finding no link between changes and global glacial events. The research suggests alteration by freshwater as sea level fell is responsible for observed geochemical patterns.
New University of Washington research reveals that injecting sulfate particles into the stratosphere will only partially mitigate climate change. The study suggests that even with increased aerosols, regional warming and extreme weather events could still occur.
A new analysis of 124 wetland studies reveals that restored wetlands rarely reach the quality of their natural counterparts. After 50-100 years, they are still 23% less in terms of carbon resources and have a 26% lower variety of native plants.
Researchers gathered at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science to integrate and refine field measurements and computer models of carbon cycling in US East Coast waters. The goal is to create a single integrated carbon budget that represents the flow of carbon within and between coastal components.
Current high levels of carbon dioxide are disrupting normal patterns of glaciation, delaying the next ice age by tens of thousands of years. This could lead to a significant increase in sea levels due to melting ice sheets.
Scientists have discovered an improved method to remove carbon dioxide from smokestacks, tailpipes, and the atmosphere. The new materials achieve high carbon dioxide removal capacity, especially in humid air, making them a potential solution for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Lund University has received a total of SEK 40 million in funding for its geology and biology research. This includes SEK 25 million for Birger Schmitz's ERC-funded project Astrogeobiosphere, which explores the link between life on Earth and astronomical events.
A new study published in Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment found that forest thinning to prevent or reduce severe wildfires releases more carbon into the atmosphere than saved by successful fire prevention. The research analyzed the effect of fuel treatments on wildfire and carbon stocks in several scenarios, concluding that eve...
Tomato and watermelon crops show higher capacity for carbon fixation under saline conditions. In contrast, lettuce, melon, and pepper crops have lower photosynthetic rates and chlorophyll content, indicating reduced efficiency in CO2 accumulation.
Researchers analyzed rock cores from the FAR DEEP project in Northwest Russia, finding that oxygen levels gradually increased over hundreds of millions of years. The appearance of free oxygen in the atmosphere likely occurred as a series of starts and stops, rather than a single event.
A recent study found that a drop in carbon dioxide led to the Antarctic ice sheet's formation, with levels below 600 parts per million triggering cooling and ice sheet initiation. The team pinpointed this threshold in ancient algae samples from deep-sea cores, suggesting carbon dioxide's importance in past and future climate.
A recent study found that atmospheric carbon dioxide levels plummeted by 40% before and during the formation of Antarctica's ice sheet 34 million years ago. This confirms the power of CO2 to dramatically alter global climate, with significant falls in the greenhouse gas resulting in global cooling.
The appearance of oxygen in the atmosphere likely occurred through a series of starts and stops over hundreds of millions of years, according to a new study. Oxygen levels gradually rose from 2,500 million years ago, eventually reaching about 1 percent of today's atmospheric level.
A new project aims to reduce carbon emissions by using microscopic tubes that can adsorb CO2 from the air, with potential applications in built-up urban areas. The technology could lead to a patentable unit being developed within five years, offering a sustainable solution for reducing carbon footprint.
A new study suggests that global warming from CO2 doubling may be less severe than projected, with climate sensitivity constraints implying less probability of extreme climatic change. The researchers used paleoclimatic data and a more advanced climate model to find that high sensitivity models overestimate cooling.
A new study finds that using sustainably managed forests and utilizing wood for long-lived products can remove existing carbon dioxide from the air. The strategy also suggests using wood wastes for biofuels to displace fossil fuels, resulting in up to a 100% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
Researchers at Iowa State University have discovered a genetic method to boost algae biomass by 50-80 percent, enabling the production of more efficient biofuels. The breakthrough involves expressing two genes that increase photosynthesis in the plant, leading to increased organic matter production.
Scientists have found that carbon cycling in the terrestrial biosphere was much smaller during the last ice age than in today's warmer climate. The researchers estimate that only about 40 petagrams of carbon were stored in vegetation and soil per year, which is roughly one third of present-day levels.
Scientists at Bangor University discover that climate-induced droughts can lead to prolonged CO2 release from peatlands, potentially lasting a decade. This has significant implications for the environment, including habitat loss, species extinction, and decreased water quality.
A national panel led by Iowa State University engineers is researching and developing technologies that capture, use and sequester carbon while enhancing food production, ecosystems, economic development and national security. The panel aims to develop an intellectual framework for a carbon negative economy by adopting a strategy of ac...
Researchers found that organic carbon resides in the Ganges-Brahmaputra system for 500-17,000 years, making it a significant source of terrestrial biospheric carbon to the ocean. The relatively long carbon residence time poses big implications for the global carbon cycle.
A new study found that peatlands will continue to sequester their huge deposits of carbon and methane under moderate climate change conditions. The research used laboratory simulations to study the decomposition of wet bog peat, showing that carbon release slows down in deeply buried peat.
Researchers found significant amounts of carbon in US streams and rivers, releasing into atmosphere before reaching coastal waters. This discovery could change how scientists model carbon movement among land, water, and atmosphere.
Researchers found that US rivers and streams are a significant source of CO2, releasing as much as a car burning 40 billion gallons of gasoline into the atmosphere. This could alter carbon modeling and require adjustments to regional carbon budgets.
Scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution discovered that bacterial communication plays a crucial role in the ocean's carbon cycle. By sending chemical signals, bacteria can break down carbon-rich particles, potentially reducing the amount of carbon dioxide being drawn out of the atmosphere and transferred to the ocean.
The Baltic Sea is a significant source of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, according to a recent study by the University of Gothenburg. The sea's ability to absorb carbon dioxide without increasing acidity has decreased in some regions, while increased in others due to local variations.
A new study using radiocarbon dating found that the Northeast Pacific was not an important reservoir of carbon during glacial times, contradicting previous assumptions. The researchers suggest that other potential sources of CO2 during glacial periods need to be explored.
Scientists have long hypothesized that the Pacific Ocean was a significant source of carbon dioxide during glacial times. However, a new study suggests that this may not be the case, forcing researchers to reassess their ideas about the fundamental mechanisms that regulate atmospheric carbon dioxide over long time scales.
Researchers found that the El Niño effect drives faster conversion of CO2 in the terrestrial biosphere, leading to a revised estimate of global primary productivity. The new value suggests that land plants are more productive than previously thought, with implications for climate models and future carbon cycle research.
A study reveals how human activities can diminish the usefulness of ornamental traits like colorful feathers as signals of fitness. In contrast, a new field experiment shows that invasive yellow starthistle responds favorably to increased carbon dioxide levels. Plant breeding experts emphasize its potential to bring about a more positi...
Researchers from Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona and ETH Zürich studied dust and iron fluxes in Antarctic Ocean over 4 million years. Dust was found to increase during glacial periods, stimulating phytoplankton growth and increasing CO2 sink. The study suggests that dust played a crucial role in past climate change and could have imp...
Scientists used a computer-generated global climate model to show that polar sea ice can recover if the planet cools again, even if it's completely lost due to warming. The research suggests that there is no 'tipping point' beyond which the ice cannot recover.