Already, they note, manmade carbon dioxide absorbed by the ocean has decreased sound absorption by 15 percent in parts of the north Atlantic, and commonly by 10 percent throughout the Atlantic and Pacific. These values are probably underestimates, they note, because they only include CO2 absorbed from the atmosphere, and not additional sources of acidification. Richard Zeebe of the University of Hawaii in Honolulu has studied both ocean acidification and seawater acoustics. "It slipped me to combine the two," he said. "That's the credit Peter Brewer should get." Since seeing the new findings, Zeebe has been working with Brewer to create global maps of ocean sound transmission under future ocean acidification scenarios. "We can find where we're going to see the biggest changes," Zeebe said. "Because of this noisier ambient level, marine mammals may have trouble communicating," he said. "At the same time, their sound may travel further in the ocean. We have to do a lot more work." The most commonly discussed concern over ocean acidification has been that a more acidic ocean will harm organisms like corals and small diatoms that form calcium carbonate skeletons, which will dissolve at a lower pH. Other effects on sea life have been predicted, too, but "this is a consequence that is, for may people, very unexpected," Zeebe said. Related Links: |
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