AUTUMN AIR SEA DISEQUILIBRIUM OF CO-2 IN THE SOUTH-PACIFIC OCEAN

Accurate assessment of the role of the South Pacific in the global carbon cycle has been hindered by a paucity of data. In particular, the South Pacific has been suggested as a major sink for CO2 on the basis of measurements made principally in the western basin. The PMEL/NOAA Marine CO2 Program has made basin-wide CO2 measurements over 6 years which now permit estimation of surface CO2 fluxes during the austral autumn. These results suggest that the South Pacific is not a significant sink for atmospheric CO2 during the austral autumn.