Beam me to Planet Gore !
Posted on 12/01/2009 7:53:24 PM PST by ricks_place
In a striking finding that raises new questions about carbon dioxide’s (CO2) impact on marine life, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) scientists report that some shell-building creatures—such as crabs, shrimp and lobsters—unexpectedly build more shell when exposed to ocean acidification caused by elevated levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2).
Because excess CO2 dissolves in the ocean—causing it to “acidify” —researchers have been concerned about the ability of certain organisms to maintain the strength of their shells. Carbon dioxide is known to trigger a process that reduces the abundance of carbonate ions in seawater—one of the primary materials that marine organisms use to build their calcium carbonate shells and skeletons.
The concern is that this process will trigger a weakening and decline in the shells of some species and, in the long term, upset the balance of the ocean ecosystem.
But in a study published in the Dec. 1 issue of Geology, a team led by former WHOI postdoctoral researcher Justin B. Ries found that seven of the 18 shelled species they observed actually built more shell when exposed to varying levels of increased acidification. This may be because the total amount of dissolved inorganic carbon available to them is actually increased when the ocean becomes more acidic, even though the concentration of carbonate ions is decreased.
“Most likely the organisms that responded positively were somehow able to manipulate…dissolved inorganic carbon in the fluid from which they precipitated their skeleton in a way that was beneficial to them,” said Ries, now an assistant professor in marine sciences at the University of North Carolina. “They were somehow able to manipulate CO2…to build their skeletons.”
(Excerpt) Read more at whoi.edu ...
Look up “oolitic limestone” same thing, Calcium Carbonate precipitates out.
The so-called climate “scientists” ought to have some humility and realize that they really don’t know all that much about how the earth works.
Yup, Ted is Dead.
Woods Hole can, now, tell the truth.
Link to research paper (provided toll-free courtesy of GEOLOGY):
http://geology.geoscienceworld.org/cgi/content/full/37/12/1131?ijkey=O79jdQYUdBqN2&keytype=ref&siteid=gsgeology
Prof. Ries’ website:
http://www.unc.edu/~jries/
Related press coverage:
http://www.unc.edu/~jries/press.html
NPR – All Things Considered (interview):
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=121378547
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