Last Updated:
February 28, 2007

GCRIO Program Overview

Library 
Our extensive collection of documents.

Privacy Policy

Archives of the
Global Climate Change Digest
A Guide to Information on Greenhouse Gases and Ozone Depletion
Published July 1988 through June 1999

FROM VOLUME 2, NUMBER 9, SEPTEMBER 1989

PROFESSIONAL PUBLICATIONS...
ATMOSPHERIC CO₂

Item #d89sep39

"Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide at Mauna Loa Observatory--1. NOAA Global Monitoring for Climatic Change Measurements with a Nondispersive Infrared Analyzer, 1974-1985," W.D. Komhyr (ARL, R/E/AR4, NOAA, Boulder CO 80303), T.B. Harris, L.S. Waterman, J. Geophys. Res., 94(D6), 8533-8547, June 20, 1989.

Describes the measurement methodology, calibrations and data accuracy of atmospheric CO₂ measurements. The select NOAA GMCC monthly mean data are compared with similar data obtained independently at Mauna Loa Observatory by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. The average difference of corresponding monthly mean CO₂ values for the two data sets is 0.15 + or - 0.18 ppm, where the indicated variability is the standard deviation.

Item #d89sep40

" . 2. Analysis of the NOAA GMCC Data, 1974-1985," K.W. Thoning (CIRES, Univ. Colorado, Boulder CO 80309), P.P. Tans, W.D. Komhyr, ibid., 8549-8565.

Analyzes 12 years of continuous data, describing hourly and daily variations in the CO₂ concentrations due to local sources and sinks and selecting data representative of background concentrations. A linear digital filter was applied to the daily averages to extract seasonal cycles and long-term trends. Results were compared to CO₂ measurements taken at Kumukaji, Hawaii. Significant differences in the amplitude and phase of the seasonal cycle were observed between sites.

Item #d89sep41

"Increased Particle Flux to the Deep Ocean Related to Monsoons," R.R. Nair (Nat. Inst. Oceanog., Dona Paula, Goa-403004, India), V. Ittekkot et al., Nature, 338(6218), 749-751, Apr. 27, 1989.

Assesses the impact of monsoon-driven processes on the downward particle flux variations in the open ocean at three selected locations in the western, central and eastern parts of the deep Arabian Sea. Particle flux at all three sites showed strong seasonality. High primary productivity during the monsoons, resulting from wind-induced mixed-layer deepening and the associated nutrient injection to the euphotic zone, appeared to be the main factor controlling the observed particle flux pattern. These findings may shed light on CO₂ uptake during glaciation when wind speeds were higher.

Item #d89sep42

"Influence of Productivity Variations on Long-Term Atmospheric CO₂," A.C. Mix (Coll. Oceanog., Oregon State Univ., Corvallis OR 97331), ibid., 337(6207), 541-543, Feb. 9, 1989.

Uses data on planktonic foraminifera species in modern and ice-age Atlantic sediments to assess spatial patterns of changes in productivity. Ice-age export productivity was higher than at present by nearly 40% for the whole Atlantic, and by 90% under the equator. These changes, if extrapolated to the global ocean, support models in which a significant portion of CO₂ changes are driven by variations in biological productivity.

Item #d89sep43

"Scavenging Pollutants from the Atmosphere," V.V. Alekseev, A.O. Kokorin, S.I. Zaitsev, Soviet Meteor. Hydrol., No. 10, 42-48, 1988.

Discusses the elimination of CO₂ and many heavy metals from the subcloud layer of the atmosphere by precipitation and the influence this process has on variations of the cycles of these substances in nature. Compares the results of theoretical and laboratory experiments with existing experimental data.