See the links below to learn more about ocean acidification and the type of research our group is involved in. The acidity of the ocean has increased by 26 since the beginning of the industrial era. As CO 2 dissolves in seawater, it forms carbonic acid, decreasing the ocean’s pH. We are currently in the process of adding pH, oxygen, chlorophyll, and turbidity sensors to our existing moored and underway systems to more accurately and precisely study the changes associated with ocean acidification. Ocean acidification The ocean absorbs around 30 of carbon dioxide (CO 2) released to the atmosphere as a result of human activities. We also make measurements of the partial pressure of CO 2 ( pCO 2) in the surface water of the world’s oceans using automated analytical systems on moorings and underway platforms. We participate in large-scale research cruises across ocean basins and along coastlines at regular intervals to study how ocean chemistry is changing through time. Our group collects several types of carbon measurements throughout the world’s oceans. Oceanographers in our group have been studying how CO 2 emissions affect the ocean system for more than three decades and continue to monitor ocean acidification in all the world’s oceans from coral reef ecosystems to deep North Pacific waters. Our observations of key physical, chemical, and biological parameters support NOAA's overall efforts to predict how marine ecosystems will respond and to develop management strategies for adapting to the consequences of ocean acidification.
![ocean acidification ocean acidification](https://marine-biology-ecology.earth.miami.edu/_assets/images/coral-lab/langdonlab2_1240x550_611oc_bd2677.jpg)
To understand the changing chemistry of the oceans and the impacts of ocean acidification on marine ecosystems. However, decades of ocean observations now show that there is also a downside - the CO 2 absorbed by the ocean is changing the chemistry of the seawater, a process called OCEAN ACIDIFICATION. Initially, many scientists focused on the benefits of the ocean removing this greenhouse gas from the atmosphere. The ocean absorbs about a quarter of the CO 2 we release into the atmosphere every year, so as atmospheric CO 2 levels increase, so do the levels in the ocean. Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, the release of carbon dioxide (CO 2) from humankind's industrial and agricultural activities has increased the amount of CO 2 in the atmosphere. Fundamental changes in seawater chemistry are occurring throughout the world's oceans.