Carbon dioxide entering the ocean from the atmosphere continually. Explain how some of this carbon can become "tied up" in the ocean for hundreds and sometimes millions of years. (Hint: think about deep ocean currents, what forms the carbon turns to when it enters the ocean.)

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Audrina Hubbard

Biology

6 November, 20:41

Carbon dioxide entering the ocean from the atmosphere continually. Explain how some of this carbon can become "tied up" in the ocean for hundreds and sometimes millions of years. (Hint: think about deep ocean currents, what forms the carbon turns to when it enters the ocean.)

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Julio Boyle · Answer 1

About 30 percent of the carbon dioxide that people have put into the atmosphere has diffused into the ocean through the direct chemical exchange. Dissolving carbon dioxide in the ocean creates carbonic acid, which increases the acidity of the water. Or rather, a slightly alkaline ocean becomes a little less alkaline. Since 1750, the pH of the ocean’s surface has dropped by 0.1, a 30 percent change in acidity.