"One of the planet’s most vital #CarbonSinks i.e. SOUTHERN OCEAN (SO) (absorbs ~40% of C) is revealing its secrets as tiny organisms in the SO play an outsized role in moderating Earth’s #climate."
Details from the recent research are discussed in a🧵⬇️ 1/8
"Based on 107 independent observations of the seasonal cycle from 63 #biogeochemical profiling floats, new study conducted by scientists from #NOAA & University of Hawai'i provide the basin-scale estimate of distinct biogenic #CarbonPool production at Southern Ocean." 2/8
Researchers find "significant meridional variability with enhanced #ParticulateOrganicCarbon production in the subantarctic & polar Antarctic sectors & enhanced #DissolvedOrganicCarbon production in the subtropical & sea-ice-dominated sectors." 3/8
"#ParticulateInorganicCarbon production peaks between 47°S and 57°S near the “great calcite belt.” Relative to an abiotic Southern Ocean (SO), organic C production enhances CO2 uptake by 2.80 ± 0.28 Pg C y−1, while PIC production reduces CO2 uptake by 0.27 ± 0.21 Pg C y−1." 4/8
"Without organic C production, the SO would be a CO2 source to the atm. The findings of this study emphasize the importance of #DOC & #PIC production, in addition to the well-recognized role of #POC production, in shaping the influence of C export on air–sea CO2 exchange." 5/8
IN SIMPLE WORDS ⬇️
🌊 "Researchers discovered that if the amount of #carbon produced by tiny organisms in Southern Ocean decreased by 30%, the Southern Ocean would release carbon dioxide instead of #absorbing it, which could worsen the #GreenhouseEffect on our planet." 6/8
Read the open-access paper entitled: "Biogenic carbon pool production maintains the Southern Ocean carbon sink" here ⬇️ pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pn…
🚨Earth has a mysterious triple symmetry that may influence its climate
New research finds that a circle running along the 27° east & 153° west meridians divides the globe into 2 halves with equal reflectivity & this may have implications for #SolarGeoengineering schemes.🧵1/10
2/ This study matters bcz Earth's reflectivity (albedo) controls how much solar energy stays in the climate system.
For decades, researchers knew the NH & SHemispheres reflect similar amounts of sunlight. But nobody had seriously looked for similar patterns across longitude.
3/ Using 25 years of satellite observations, researchers discovered that the 27°E meridian uniquely splits Earth into eastern & western hemispheres with almost identical reflected sunlight. Not 20°E. Not 40°E. Just one remarkably precise divide.
From Stardust’s SAI particle reveal to US Congress oversight calls, @ARIA_research funding, @UNEP report, EPRS governance briefing & UK public support for SRM research, key SRM headlines from May:🧵0/12
Company discloses 0.5µm amorphous silica–based particles & calcium carbonate core–shell variants, deployed at ~18km altitude, targeting up to ~1% solar reflection with monitoring & dispersal systems.
1/
2️⃣ US Congress requests @NOAA geoengineering briefing:
🚨A new @EarthsFutureEiC study tests an Arctic intervention: flooding winter sea ice with seawater to see if it can become thicker, brighter, and more resistant to summer melt.
The answer comes from a real field experiment in the Canadian Arctic.🧵1/11
2/ The experiment was conducted in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut (Canadian Arctic) using a ~1 km² sea-ice field site.
Researchers divided the ice into control plots (no flooding) and treated plots (artificial flooding) to directly compare outcomes under identical conditions.
3/Process:
•Seawater was pumped from ocean
•Spread manually/with equipment over ice surface during winter
•H2O rapidly froze due to sub-zero air temp
•Process repeated in some plots multiple times over winter
Each flooding cycle added new frozen layer on top of existing ice
🚨Monthly Solar Geoengineering Updates (April'2026)🚨
From EU calls for an #SRM deployment moratorium & WHO-linked health-centered governance report, to Stardust publishing its own SRM rules, key SRM headlines you need to know from past month:
🔗
The private SRM company publishes voluntary rules and safety guidelines, but experts raise concerns over transparency, unknown aerosols, and private control of planetary-scale interventions.
1/12
2️⃣ WHO-linked report calls for health-centered SRM governance:
A pre-print urges SRM governance centred on human health, equity, and Global South inclusion, stressing SRM must never replace emissions cuts (“non-substitution” principle).