marine sciences III
LECTURE 1 – WEEK 1: introduction + carbon cycle, climate and ocean change
APPY SLUIJS
INTRODUCTION ○ biosphere has taken up 11 Gt of CO2 → net mass of the
biosphere is growing
● marine sciences II: oceans of the future ○ past decade atmospheric rise per year; 19 Gt of CO2
● major marine sciences themes ○ dissolved inorganic carbon pool is the largest reservoir
○ physical oceanography
○ chemical oceanography
○ biological oceanography
○ analogues of change; paleoceanography
● deadlines literature case studies
○ rationale and questions 14/11, 20:00
○ summary #1 28/11, 20:00
○ summary #2 16/11, 20:00
○ feedback presentation 09/12, 20:00
● since 1965 the atmospheric [CO2] went up
LEARNING GOALS
○ not linear, but a slight rise (exponential)
○ Northern Hemisphere contains the majority of the world’s
● understand how major groups of organisms respond to
land mass → during spring and summer (April-September),
○ single stressors (warming, acidification, anoxia)
extensive vegetative growth occurs; plants absorb large
○ multiple stressors
amounts of CO2 for photosynthesis, which reduces
● understand the response on ecosystem level
atmospheric CO2 levels → in fall and winter (October-
● understand how the system as a whole changed during past
March) decomposition and respiration release CO2 back
analogous changes
into the atmosphere, leading to an increase in
○ get a sense on the time scales involved
atmospheric CO2 levels
GRADES
● summaries (specific for 3 editors) 15%
○ structure, writing in English
● presentation 25%
○ content (presentation, progress reports)
○ presentation (structure, technique)
● exam 60%
MODERN PERTURBATION OF THE CARBON CYCLE
● sources of CO2; annual CO2 emissions
○ increased usage fossil fuel → total annual amount of CO2
● Global Carbon Project
emitted per year has been rising since 60s
○ mission: assist the international science community to
○ there was a drop in the fossil fuel demand in 2020/21 due
establish a common, mutually agreed knowledge base to
to covid crisis → lower CO2 emissions
support policy debate and action to slow the rate of
○ deforestation is stable at about 5 Gt of CO2 per year
greenhouse gas production
○ China is a major emitter contributor
● units
⥽ smallest contributors are EU and India
○ data is shown in billion tonnes CO2 (GtCO2)
⥽ USA has the biggest emitter per capita (person)
○ 1 gigatonne (Gt) = 1 billion tonnes = 1×1015 g = 1 petagram
○ in the last 3 decades there has been an uncoupling of the
(Pg)
amount of money people make and the total CO2
○ 1 kg carbon = 3.664 kg CO2
emissions; increase of wealth doesn't come at the cost of
○ 1 GtC = 3.664 billion tonnes CO2 = 3.664 GtCO2
extra CO2 emissions
● carbon fluxes
○ land-use change is also called deforestation
1
LECTURE 1 – WEEK 1: introduction + carbon cycle, climate and ocean change
APPY SLUIJS
INTRODUCTION ○ biosphere has taken up 11 Gt of CO2 → net mass of the
biosphere is growing
● marine sciences II: oceans of the future ○ past decade atmospheric rise per year; 19 Gt of CO2
● major marine sciences themes ○ dissolved inorganic carbon pool is the largest reservoir
○ physical oceanography
○ chemical oceanography
○ biological oceanography
○ analogues of change; paleoceanography
● deadlines literature case studies
○ rationale and questions 14/11, 20:00
○ summary #1 28/11, 20:00
○ summary #2 16/11, 20:00
○ feedback presentation 09/12, 20:00
● since 1965 the atmospheric [CO2] went up
LEARNING GOALS
○ not linear, but a slight rise (exponential)
○ Northern Hemisphere contains the majority of the world’s
● understand how major groups of organisms respond to
land mass → during spring and summer (April-September),
○ single stressors (warming, acidification, anoxia)
extensive vegetative growth occurs; plants absorb large
○ multiple stressors
amounts of CO2 for photosynthesis, which reduces
● understand the response on ecosystem level
atmospheric CO2 levels → in fall and winter (October-
● understand how the system as a whole changed during past
March) decomposition and respiration release CO2 back
analogous changes
into the atmosphere, leading to an increase in
○ get a sense on the time scales involved
atmospheric CO2 levels
GRADES
● summaries (specific for 3 editors) 15%
○ structure, writing in English
● presentation 25%
○ content (presentation, progress reports)
○ presentation (structure, technique)
● exam 60%
MODERN PERTURBATION OF THE CARBON CYCLE
● sources of CO2; annual CO2 emissions
○ increased usage fossil fuel → total annual amount of CO2
● Global Carbon Project
emitted per year has been rising since 60s
○ mission: assist the international science community to
○ there was a drop in the fossil fuel demand in 2020/21 due
establish a common, mutually agreed knowledge base to
to covid crisis → lower CO2 emissions
support policy debate and action to slow the rate of
○ deforestation is stable at about 5 Gt of CO2 per year
greenhouse gas production
○ China is a major emitter contributor
● units
⥽ smallest contributors are EU and India
○ data is shown in billion tonnes CO2 (GtCO2)
⥽ USA has the biggest emitter per capita (person)
○ 1 gigatonne (Gt) = 1 billion tonnes = 1×1015 g = 1 petagram
○ in the last 3 decades there has been an uncoupling of the
(Pg)
amount of money people make and the total CO2
○ 1 kg carbon = 3.664 kg CO2
emissions; increase of wealth doesn't come at the cost of
○ 1 GtC = 3.664 billion tonnes CO2 = 3.664 GtCO2
extra CO2 emissions
● carbon fluxes
○ land-use change is also called deforestation
1
