Greatest mass extinction driven by acidic oceans, study finds

[orogenicman]

More evidence to back up what I've said before:

Greatest mass extinction driven by acidic oceans study finds -- ScienceDaily

Changes to the Earth's oceans, caused by extreme volcanic activity, triggered the greatest extinction of all time, a study suggests. The amount of carbon added to the atmosphere that triggered the mass extinction was probably greater than today's fossil fuel reserves, the team says. However, the carbon was released at a rate similar to modern emissions. This fast rate of release was a critical factor driving ocean acidification, researchers say.

Journal Reference:

1. M. O. Clarkson, S. A. Kasemann, R. A. Wood, T. M. Lenton, S. J. Daines, S. Richoz, F. Ohnemueller, A. Meixner, S. W. Poulton, E. T. Tipper. Ocean acidification and the Permo-Triassic mass extinction. Science, 2015 DOI: 10.1126/science.aaa0193

 

[waltky]

Human activity increasing acidity of oceans...

Report: Acidic Oceans Tied to Human Activity
September 08, 2016 - Scientists have known for a while that the world's oceans play a big role in the climate because they absorb carbon dioxide, both naturally occurring and the carbon we put in the atmosphere through burning fossil fuels. But some new research is sounding the alarm about what all that carbon is doing to the oceans.

How much carbon is too much?

The new findings were researched by scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans. Lead scientist Sophie Chu from MIT and her team went into the Northeast Pacific initially to test how carbon in the water was affecting pteropods, animals like free-floating sea snails and sea slugs. They chose this area because, according to Chu, it is the end of the world's ocean circulation system and contains a lot of the ocean's naturally occurring carbon. “This puts the Pacific at this already heightened state of high carbon and low pH,” Chu says. The lower the pH, the more acidic the water.

Lead author Sophie Chu at work.​

Her team's concern was that excessive carbon and higher acidity in the oceans could be lowering the amount of a mineral called aragonite, which is essential for many marine species’ shells. They found that it was, which is bad news for the pteropods. But their work also allowed them to see just how much human-created carbon dioxide was being absorbed by the ocean.

Good news, bad news

And when they ran those numbers they found that up north, the amount of carbon dioxide being absorbed the ocean was rising, at roughly the same rate humans are pumping it into the atmosphere, called anthropogenic emissions. “The ocean has been the only true sink for anthropogenic emissions since the Industrial Revolution,” Chu says. “Right now, it stores about one-quarter to one-third of the anthropogenic emissions from the atmosphere."

The good news is that her work suggests that the ocean can, for the moment, continue to absorb some of the excess carbon we are pushing into the atmosphere. But Chu notes, it can't keep doing that forever. “It would take hundreds of thousands of years for the ocean to absorb the majority of CO2 that humans have released into the atmosphere,” she says. “But at the rate we’re going, it’s just way faster than anything can keep up with.”

And that means at some point, the oceans will hit capacity. "We’re expecting at some point, the storage will slow down," Chu says. "When it does, more carbon dioxide will stay in the atmosphere, which means more warming. So it’s really important that we continue to monitor this.”

Report: Acidic Oceans Tied to Human Activity

 

[waltky]

Granny says the Bible says inna end times a third of the life inna seas is gonna die...

More acidic oceans 'will affect all sea life'
Sun, 22 Oct 2017 - The eight-year study finds infant sea creatures will be especially harmed by more acidic oceans.

All sea life will be affected because carbon dioxide emissions from modern society are making the oceans more acidic, a major new report will say. The eight-year study from more than 250 scientists finds that infant sea creatures will be especially harmed. This means the number of baby cod growing to adulthood could fall to a quarter or even a 12th of today's numbers, the researchers suggest. The assessment comes from the BIOACID project, which is led from Germany. A brochure summarising the main outcomes will be presented to climate negotiators at their annual meeting, which this year is taking place in Bonn in November.

All sea life will be affected because carbon dioxide emissions from modern society are making the oceans more acidic, a major new report will say.​

The Biological Impacts of Ocean Acidification report authors say some creatures may benefit directly from the chemical changes - but even these could still be adversely affected indirectly by shifts in the whole food web. What is more, the research shows that changes through acidification will be made worse by climate change, pollution, coastal development, over-fishing and agricultural fertilisers. Ocean acidification is happening because as CO2 from fossil fuels dissolves in seawater, it produces carbonic acid and this lowers the pH of the water.

Mesocosms ("giant test tubes") allow scientists to study acidification effects on real-world organisms​

Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the average pH of global ocean surface waters have fallen from pH 8.2 to 8.1. This represents an increase in acidity of about 26%. The study's lead author is Prof Ulf Riebesell from the GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research in Kiel. He is a world authority on the topic and has typically communicated cautiously about the effects of acidification.

Organisms that use calcium carbonate to build their bodies will likely struggle​

He told BBC News: "Acidification affects marine life across all groups, although to different degrees. "Warm-water corals are generally more sensitive than cold-water corals. Clams and snails are more sensitive than crustaceans. "And we found that early life stages are generally more affected than adult organisms. "But even if an organism isn't directly harmed by acidification it may be affected indirectly through changes in its habitat or changes in the food web. "At the end of the day, these changes will affect the many services the ocean provides to us."

On the agenda

 

[Vastator]

Seems like after every mass extinction, a new, more complex form of life arises... Maybe this is the logical catylist for such an advancement...

 

[westwall]

Mainly it is drivel, pushed by bad scientists using even worse climate models.

 

[Old Rocks]

Seems like after every mass extinction, a new, more complex form of life arises... Maybe this is the logical catylist for such an advancement...

And what do you think will replace homo sap? Now, instead of denying what we are doing to ourselves, you assholes seem to be celebrating the idea of species level suicide. Just do it for yourselves, and let the rest of us live.

 

[Old Rocks]

Mainly it is drivel, pushed by bad scientists using even worse climate models.

Mostly measurements, done by real scientists, not internet posiers.

 

[Vastator]

Seems like after every mass extinction, a new, more complex form of life arises... Maybe this is the logical catylist for such an advancement...

And what do you think will replace homo sap? Now, instead of denying what we are doing to ourselves, you assholes seem to be celebrating the idea of species level suicide. Just do it for yourselves, and let the rest of us live.

Actually I was wondering what completely new creature could rise from the ashes. From amphibians, to reptiles. Reptiles to birds, and mammals... What completely new creature could birds or mammals give rise to? One can only wonder...

 

[Defiant1]

Seems like after every mass extinction, a new, more complex form of life arises... Maybe this is the logical catylist for such an advancement...

And what do you think will replace homo sap? Now, instead of denying what we are doing to ourselves, you assholes seem to be celebrating the idea of species level suicide. Just do it for yourselves, and let the rest of us live.

So you admit, all this climate change nonsense isn't about what is best for the planet but what is best for human beings.