Program

Ocean surface acidity and carbon dioxide (CO₂) fugacity (assumed to be the same as partial pressure) at sea (fCO₂sea) are critical in quantifying the ocean as the source and sink of the greenhouse gas and the characterization of ocean dynamics and biogeochemistry. We developed and validated a statistical model to estimate fCO₂sea using over 200,000 coincident in situ and satellite data a few years ago. Similarly, we have just trained a statistical model to estimate acidity, in the form of pH value, using less but still significant number (20,000) of coincident in situ and satellite data. Decade long estimations of fCO₂sea and acidity over the tropical oceans have been produced from spacebased measurements of sea surface temperature, salinity, and chlorophyll. Their temporal-spatial variations of acidity and fugacity, the relation between them, and their relations with ocean dynamics and biogeochemistry are being studied. Their changes in geographical distribution during the recent El Nino/Southern Oscillation and Northern Pacific warming anomaly are revealed. The distinction of climate processes from ocean biogeochemistry is elaborated through the variability of the two parameters.