Pumps Flashcards
How does the biological carbon pump work?
Phytoplankton are mostly microscopic single-celled plants found in the warmer surface waters of oceans/seas.
They consume CO2 from atmosphere during photosynthesis, storing it in their bodies as carbs.
When they die, the phytoplankton transfer carbon to deeper ocean areas (forming calcium carbonate on the seabed), or shallower layers if eaten by zooplankton (transfers carbon to deeper waters when they die).
How does the marine carbonate pump work?
The food web extends to phytoplankton then to zooplankton and then to other organisms (coral/oysters/crabs) which consume and use the carbon to make their shells/skeletons.
While some CO2 is returned to the atmosphere through respiration, these marine creatures collectively use enough carbon to create room for the sea to absorb more from the atmosphere.
In a short time, CO2 is taken from the atmosphere into the ocean then chemically transferred to the seabed to become chemically fixed in sedimentary rocks.
How does the thermohaline circulation pump work?
Warm, salty ocean currents transfer heat energy from tropical areas towards the poles and cold, less salty currents transfer colder water towards the equator.
Warmer waters tend to travel near the surface, while large volumes of cold water tend to move at depths below 3km.
The thermohaline circulation helps transfer CO2 from equatorial ocean source areas to polar ocean sink areas. Upwelling and downwelling currents move dissolved CO2 in what has been called a physical carbon pump.
