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Man-Made CO2 Emissions Impact on the Oceans

Jan 23, 2012; 3:32 PM ET

An international team of climate modelers, marine conservationists, ocean chemists, biologists and ecologists using computer modeling and actual observations have concluded that man-made carbon dioxide emissions over the last 100 to 200 years have already raised ocean acidity far beyond the range of natural variations.

When carbon dioxide reacts with seawater it increases the water's acidity. This increase in acidity is harmful to marine organisms such as corals, since it reduces their calification rate.

A coral reef. Image courtesy NOAA.

The computer models that the team used were able to simulate climate and ocean conditions going back 21,000 years in time. The models also captured well the current observed seasonal and annual variations in this quantity in several key coral reef regions, according to the EurekAlert press release.

So far, aragonite (a form of calcium carbonate) saturation has dropped 5X below the pre-industrial range of natural variability, according to the research.

"Our results suggest that severe reductions are likely to occur in coral reef diversity, structural complexity and resilience by the middle of this century," says co-author Professor Axel Timmermann."

You can read the full story and the potential impacts right here.

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The study was published in the January 22nd issue of Nature Climate Change.

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