Feature Climate

The Southern Ocean may be less of a carbon sink than we thought

The water surrounding Antarctica may be belching more CO2 than it takes in

southern ocean in Antarctica

FRIEND OR FOE?  The water around Antarctica absorbs a lot of the carbon that humans produce. But hints that the ocean’s cleanup capacity may be falling short are coming in from CO2-measuring floats being dropping from ships.

Hannah Zanowski/SOCCOM Project/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

By Alexandra Witze

The vast stretch of icy water that separates Antarctica from other continents is a dark mystery to most people.