Coral is already threatened by insidious change in
sea water chemistry as ever more carbonic acid — from dissolved atmospheric carbon dioxide, the product of the combustion of fossil fuels — gets into the sea.
Not exact matches
Common in Precambrian Shield rocks — the oldest rocks on Earth — the ancient
waters have a
chemistry similar to that found near deep
sea vents, suggesting these
waters can support microbes living in isolation from the surface.
Collectively, these observations can be used to project trends of ocean acidification in higher latitude marine surface
waters where inorganic carbon
chemistry is largely influenced by
sea ice meltwater.
Beyond atmospheric
chemistry, this process depends on the color of
sea water, and the organisms that bloom in it, and as long as that
water is left dark, this harbinger of Anthopocene climate change may be expected to grow.
Roger Revelle discovered that the peculiar
chemistry of
sea water prevents that from happening.
Excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere — in addition to contributing to climate change — is absorbed by the ocean, making
sea water more acidic and leading to a suite of changes in ocean
chemistry.
He spent a lot of time talking about the profound effects of these «black smokers» on
sea -
water chemistry.
It's true that additional CO2 can not remove the buffering capacity of
sea water, which is characterized by the alkalinity, although this way of characterizing the buffering capacity is a simplification of full
chemistry.
Bigger oceans, different land - mass distribution, different atmospheric
chemistry, different
sea -
water chemistry hotter core / mantle and so on.
However, Revelle, something of a specialist in
sea -
water chemistry, was aware that the various chemicals present in
sea -
water have buffering effects that work to keep
sea -
water at a slightly alkaline state.
Gases suspended in air dissolve into
sea water and disrupt the normal
chemistry of oceans.
Read / Purchase the Report Ocean Acidification: A National Strategy to Meet the Challenges of A Changing Ocean (2010) Excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere — in addition to contributing to climate change — is absorbed by the ocean, making
sea water more acidic and leading to a suite of changes in ocean
chemistry.