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Melting of massive ice ‘lid’ resulted in huge release of CO₂ at the end of the ice age
http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/melting-of-massive-ice-lid-resulted-in-huge-release-of-co2-at-the-end-of-the-ice-age[font face=Serif][font size=5]Melting of massive ice ‘lid’ resulted in huge release of CO₂ at the end of the ice age[/font]
[font size=4]A new study of how the structure of the ocean has changed since the end of the last ice age suggest that the melting of a vast ‘lid’ of sea ice caused the release of huge amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.[/font]
[font size=3]…
The study includes the first detailed reconstruction of the Southern Ocean density of the period and identified how it changed as the Earth warmed. It suggests a massive reorganisation of ocean temperature and salinity, but finds that this was not the driver of increased concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The study, led by researchers from the University of Cambridge, is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
…
“Before this study there were these two observations, the first was that glacial deep water was really salty and dense, and the second that it also contained a lot of CO₂, and the community put two and two together and said these two observations must be linked,” said Roberts. “But it was only through doing our study, and looking at the change in both density and CO₂ across the deglaciation, that we found they actually weren’t linked. This surprised us all.”
…
Like a bottle of wine with a cork, sea ice can prevent CO₂-rich water from releasing its CO₂ to the atmosphere. The Southern Ocean is a key area of exchange of CO₂ between the ocean and atmosphere. The expansion of sea ice during the last ice age acted as a ‘lid’ on the Southern Ocean, preventing CO₂ from escaping. The researchers suggest that the retreat of this sea ice lid at the end of the last ice age uncorked this 'vintage' CO₂, resulting in an increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
…[/font][/font]
http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1511252113 (Doesn’t work yet…)
[font size=4]A new study of how the structure of the ocean has changed since the end of the last ice age suggest that the melting of a vast ‘lid’ of sea ice caused the release of huge amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.[/font]
[font size=3]…
The study includes the first detailed reconstruction of the Southern Ocean density of the period and identified how it changed as the Earth warmed. It suggests a massive reorganisation of ocean temperature and salinity, but finds that this was not the driver of increased concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The study, led by researchers from the University of Cambridge, is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
…
“Before this study there were these two observations, the first was that glacial deep water was really salty and dense, and the second that it also contained a lot of CO₂, and the community put two and two together and said these two observations must be linked,” said Roberts. “But it was only through doing our study, and looking at the change in both density and CO₂ across the deglaciation, that we found they actually weren’t linked. This surprised us all.”
…
Like a bottle of wine with a cork, sea ice can prevent CO₂-rich water from releasing its CO₂ to the atmosphere. The Southern Ocean is a key area of exchange of CO₂ between the ocean and atmosphere. The expansion of sea ice during the last ice age acted as a ‘lid’ on the Southern Ocean, preventing CO₂ from escaping. The researchers suggest that the retreat of this sea ice lid at the end of the last ice age uncorked this 'vintage' CO₂, resulting in an increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
…[/font][/font]
http://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1511252113
