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.
Beavers could engineer riverbeds into promising carbon dioxide sinks, according to a new international study led by researchers at the University of Birmingham. The paper, published in Communications Earth & Environment, ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 18, 2026
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A new study reveals an unprecedented increase in wildfires in tropical peatlands during the 20th century. "Unprecedented burning in tropical peatlands during the 20th century compared to the previous two millennia" is published ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 17, 2026
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A global analysis of more than 2,300 seawater samples from more than 20 field studies around the globe indicates that human-made chemicals make up a significant portion of organic matter in coastal oceans. The international ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 16, 2026
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The Amazon rainforest is famous for storing massive amounts of carbon in its trees and soils, helping regulate the global climate. Yet a paper published in New Phytologist shows that one of South America's largest carbon-storing ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 12, 2026
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The Southern Ocean—vast, boundless waters surrounding Antarctica—plays an outsized role in global climate, largely thanks to tiny drifting organisms called plankton that soak up carbon. Reporting in Nature Communications ...
Ecology
Mar 10, 2026
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How can bacteria that forage on organic particles survive in vast ocean regions where such particles are extremely sparse? A new study by researchers from ETH Zurich and Queen Mary University of London shows that variability ...
Cell & Microbiology
Mar 10, 2026
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In some parts of the deep ocean, it can look like it's snowing. This "marine snow" is the dust and detritus that organisms slough off as they die and decompose. Marine snow can fall several kilometers to the deepest parts ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 9, 2026
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There is growing interest in the scientific community and private sector in biological approaches to marine carbon dioxide removal—strategies designed to enhance the ocean's natural ability to absorb carbon from the atmosphere. ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 9, 2026
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A research team from the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, has developed an innovative model to accurately assess the carbon sequestration capacity of global salt marshes, addressing a long-standing ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 7, 2026
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Earth is not infinite. Pollution beyond certain levels threatens the climate and ecosystems. To prevent this, scientists have proposed planetary boundaries, defining the safe operating limits of the Earth system. A KAIST ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 6, 2026
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