Carbon flux, in the context of biogeochemical topics, denotes the rate at which carbon in its various chemical forms (e.g., CO₂, CH₄, dissolved inorganic and organic carbon, particulate organic carbon) is transferred per unit area and time between reservoirs such as the atmosphere, terrestrial biosphere, oceans, and lithosphere. It encompasses processes including photosynthetic uptake, respiration, decomposition, combustion, weathering, ocean–atmosphere gas exchange, and sedimentation. Quantification of carbon fluxes, typically in units like g C m⁻² yr⁻¹, is central to constraining carbon budgets, modeling the global carbon cycle, and assessing feedbacks in climate system research.
Removing sheep and other livestock entirely from upland grasslands—a strategy often promoted as a way to boost carbon storage and tackle climate change—may actually reduce the most stable forms of soil carbon, according ...
Ecology
Feb 2, 2026
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Using a new method to track groundwater levels and greenhouse gas emissions, researchers uncover the climate impact of Southeast Asia's peatlands. In Indonesia, Malaysia, and other parts of Southeast Asia, vast areas spanning ...
Earth Sciences
Jan 30, 2026
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Wetlands make up only about 6% of the land area but contain about 30% of the terrestrial organic carbon pool. Therefore, CO2 emissions from wetlands are central to the global climate balance. In Denmark, the plan is to flood ...
Earth Sciences
Jan 29, 2026
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116
Mangrove forests play an important role in the global carbon cycle, particularly within the marine carbon system. Growing along tropical and subtropical coastlines, these salt-tolerant trees are among nature's most efficient ...
In its natural state, peatland is one of the largest carbon stores in nature. This is because the soil is so waterlogged and low in oxygen that dead plant material breaks down very slowly. The plants do not fully decompose ...
Earth Sciences
Jan 27, 2026
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Narrow bands of ocean covering just over one-third of the world's seas are responsible for absorbing nearly three-quarters of the carbon dioxide that oceans pull from the atmosphere, new research shows. The study, published ...
Earth Sciences
Jan 27, 2026
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An experiment in western China over the past four decades shows that it is possible to tame the expansion of desert lands with greenery, and, in the process, pull excess carbon dioxide out of the sky.
Earth Sciences
Jan 26, 2026
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The ocean is continuously ventilated when surface waters sink and transport, for example, oxygen and carbon to greater depths. The efficiency of this process can be estimated using the so-called water age, which describes ...
Earth Sciences
Jan 20, 2026
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Carbon released from Earth's spreading tectonic plates, not volcanoes, may have triggered major transitions between ancient ice ages and warm climates, new research finds.
Earth Sciences
Jan 20, 2026
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Soils store more carbon than the atmosphere and vegetation combined, with soil microorganisms playing the main role. As a result, the global soil carbon cycle—by which carbon enters, moves through, and leaves soils worldwide—exerts ...
Earth Sciences
Jan 19, 2026
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