Global carbon sinks and their variability inferred from atmospheric O2 and delta13C.

Recent time-series measurements of atmospheric O2 show that the land biosphere and world oceans annually sequestered 1.4 +/- 0.8 and 2.0 +/- 0.6 gigatons of carbon, respectively, between mid-1991 and mid-1997. The rapid storage of carbon by the land biosphere from 1991 to 1997 contrasts with the 1980s, when the land biosphere was approximately neutral. Comparison with measurements of delta13CO2 implies an isotopic flux of 89 +/- 21 gigatons of carbon per mil per year, in agreement with model- and inventory-based estimates of this flux. Both the delta13C and the O2 data show significant interannual variability in carbon storage over the period of record. The general agreement of the independent estimates from O2 and delta13C is a robust signal of variable carbon uptake by both the land biosphere and the oceans.

A Large Northern Hemisphere Terrestrial CO2 Sink Indicated by the 13C/12C Ratio of Atmospheric CO2.

Measurements of the concentrations and carbon-13/carbon-12 isotope ratios of atmospheric carbon dioxide can be used to quantify the net removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by the oceans and terrestrial plants. A study of weekly samples from a global network of 43 sites defined the latitudinal and temporal patterns of the two carbon sinks. A strong terrestrial biospheric sink was found in the temperate latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere in 1992 and 1993, the magnitude of which is roughly half that of the global fossil fuel burning emissions for those years. The challenge now is to identify those processes that would cause the terrestrial biosphere to absorb carbon dioxide in such large quantities.

Climatic change in tasmania inferred from a 1089-year tree-ring chronology of huon pine.

A climatically sensitive huon pine tree-ring chronology from western Tasmania allows inferences about Austral summer temperature change since A.D. 900. Since 1965, huon pine growth has been unusually rapid for trees that are in many cases over 700 years old. This growth increase correlates well with recent anomalous warming in Tasmania on the basis of instrumental records and supports claims that a climatic change, perhaps influenced by greenhouse gases, is in progress. Although this temperature increase exceeds any that are inferred to have occurred during the past 1089 years at this location, it has not yet clearly emerged from the natural background variability of climate in this part of the Southern Hemisphere.

Physiological influences on carbon isotope discrimination in huon pine (Lagarostrobos franklinii).

Measurements of the light environment and stomatal and photosynthetic behaviour are reported for Huon Pine (Lagarostrobos franklinii, family Podocarpaceae) in western Tasmanian rainforest. For a variety of microenvironments, these are used in an analysis of stable carbon isotope measurements in the air, and in branch and leaf material, using a model for carbon isotope fractionation in leaves (Farquhar et al. 1982).The major features of δ13C variations with respect to branch position can be explained in terms of the direct influence of light level acting via the rate of CO2 assimilation. In addition a relatively constant δ13C gradient of about 2.6‰ between leaf tip and branch wood is observed.Alternative explanations are advanced for the tip-towood gradient in δ13C. If the δ13C of leaf tips is taken to represent the value for photosynthate, maintenance respiration is proposed as a mechanism for the further fractionation; a significant 13C depletion in respired CO2 is implied which is not supported by indirect measurements of atmospheric isotope ratio. Furthermore, an assumption of significant sampling errors (e.g. related to humidity effects on assimilation) is required to obtain good quantitative prediction of the light influence.If the branch wood δ13C is taken to represent that of the photosynthate, the tip-to-wood gradient may find an explanation, via the model, in terms of tip tissue comprising carbon from immature cells. Translocation of photosynthate from exposed to shaded branches is then proposed as a means of obtaining quantitative agreement with the predicted light influence.The support provided for the applicability of the Farqunar et al. (1982) model in the field is discussed in the context of the problem of obtaining past global atmospheric CO2 levels from δ13C in tree-rings.