A recent study funded by @DegreesNGO, executed by @peteirvine & others aims "to assess the impact of #SAG on Sea Surface Temperature (SST) in the Gulf of Guinea & its causes using GLENS simulations performed under high anthropogenic emission scenario (RCP8.5)."
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"Study focus on two dynamically different regions:
🔸Sassandra Upwelling in Côte d’Ivoire (SUC, located east of Cape Palmas)
🔸Takoradi Upwelling in Ghana (TUG, located east of Cape Three Points)" 2/8
Results show that "in the SUC region, under climate change, there is an increase in SST (referred to as the current climate) all year long (by 1.52 °C on average) mainly due to an < in net heat flux (lead by the > in longwave radiation) & also in weak vertical mixing." 3/8
"Under SAG, SST decreases all the seasonal cycle with its maximum in Dec (−0.4 °C) due to a reduction in the net heat flux (caused by a diminution of #SolarRadiation) & an increase in vertical advection (due to an increase in vertical temp. gradient & vertical velocity)." 4/8
"In the TUG region, under climate change, SST warming is a little more intense than in the SUC region and SST changes are driven by an increase in the net heat flux and strong stratification." 5/8
"The cooling of the SST in TUG is similar to the SUC region, but contrary to this region, the cooling
under SAG is not only explained by a decrease in the net heat flux but also by the remote forcing of
wind changes at the western equatorial Atlantic." 6/8
Read open access paper on "Impact of Stratospheric Geoengineering on Sea Surface
Temperature in the Northern Gulf of Guinea" ⬇️ mdpi.com/2225-1154/11/4…
🚨Georgia Tech researchers have developed a low-cost method to pull CO₂ from the air (#DAC) using cold temperatures and common materials, potentially slashing capture costs to ~$70 per ton and expanding where Direct Air Capture can work. #CDR
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2/ DAC is a critical tool for fighting climate change, but it’s been too expensive to scale.
Current systems often exceed $200 per ton of CO₂ captured, partly due to the high energy needed to run them.
3/ The Georgia Tech team found a smart way to tap into existing industrial cold from liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals.
When LNG is regasified for use, huge amounts of cold energy are wasted (energy that can chill air for better CO₂ capture).
New study revealed that Kenyan fig trees can literally turn parts of themselves to stone, using microbes to convert internal crystals into limestone-like deposits that lock away CO2, sweeten surrounding soil & still yield fruit. #CarbonRemoval
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2/ Some Kenyan fig trees, like Ficus wakefieldii, store CO₂ not just as organic matter (wood/leaves) but also as calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) - the same mineral as chalk or limestone.
This process is called the oxalate-carbonate pathway (OCP).
3/ PROCESS:
First, the tree forms calcium oxalate crystals inside its wood.
Then, special microbes (oxalotrophic microorganisms) or fungi convert these crystals into CaCO₃.
This locks up carbon in mineral form that can persist in soil far longer than organic carbon.