Ocean acidification is the ongoing decrease in ocean pH caused primarily by uptake of anthropogenic CO₂ from the atmosphere, leading to shifts in the seawater carbonate system. Dissolved CO₂ forms carbonic acid, which dissociates to release hydrogen ions and convert carbonate ions to bicarbonate, reducing carbonate saturation states critical for calcifying organisms (e.g., corals, coccolithophores, mollusks). Research focuses on quantifying pH and aragonite/calcite saturation changes, organismal and ecosystem responses, biogeochemical feedbacks, and interactions with other stressors such as warming and deoxygenation, using observations, laboratory experiments, mesocosms, and Earth system models.
In the first and only reconstruction of ocean pH ever carried out, new research from the University of St Andrews and the University of Birmingham has discovered that a rapid acidification of oceans, due to a massive and ...
Earth Sciences
Jul 14, 2025
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Groundwater input to coral reefs directly affects water chemistry and triggers a cascade of changes in the coastal ecosystem, according to a new study led by University of Hawaiʻi (UH) at Mānoa oceanographers. Freshwater ...
Ecology
Jun 27, 2025
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A new international research study has forecast the impacts of climate change on the world's coastal oceans to the end of the century.
Environment
Jun 23, 2025
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For the past fortnight, the city of Nice in France has been the global epicenter of ocean science and politics.
Environment
Jun 15, 2025
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A team of planetary scientists, ecologists, and marine biologists affiliated with several institutions in the U.S. and one in the U.K., has found evidence suggesting that parts of the world's oceans have already passed what ...
The Chesapeake Bay is the continental United States' largest estuary, spanning approximately 320 kilometers (200 miles) between northeastern Maryland and Virginia Beach. Like many coastal ecosystems, its water chemistry is ...
Earth Sciences
May 21, 2025
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108
A new study led by Jochen Knies from the iC3 Polar Research Hub has found worrying signs that climate change may be undermining the capacity of Arctic fjords to serve as effective carbon sinks. The findings suggest that the ...
Earth Sciences
Apr 25, 2025
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As climate change increases, so does the pressure on humanity to remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere—possibly with the help of the oceans. But which of the proposed marine CO2 removal and storage options should ...
Earth Sciences
Apr 11, 2025
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Ocean acidification, caused by the ongoing absorption of atmospheric CO₂, poses threats to marine ecosystems and biodiversity. Accurately assessing variations in seawater pH is crucial for evaluating biological responses ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 27, 2025
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Princeton University and Xiamen University researchers report that in tropical and subtropical oligotrophic waters, ocean acidification reduces primary production, the process of photosynthesis in phytoplankton, where they ...
