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Data Sources |
ECV Products and Requirements |
Nitrous Oxide
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Nitrous oxide (N2O) is an important climate-relevant trace gas in the Earth’s atmosphere. In the troposphere it acts as a strong greenhouse gas and in the stratosphere it acts as an ozone depleting substance because it is the precursor of ozone depleting nitric oxide radicals. The ocean - including its coastal areas such as continental shelves, estuaries and upwelling areas - contribute about 30% to the atmospheric N2O budget. | |
| Domain: | Ocean | |
| Subdomain: | Biogeochemical | |
| Scientific Area: | Carbon Cycle and other GHGs | |
| Product: | Interior ocean N2O; N2O air-sea flux | |
N2O concentration and flux in the ocean
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Figure: Global N2O (nmol kg–1) distribution in 200 m depth estimated using depth/AOUR-depending N2O production rates (a) and using temperature/AOUR-depending N2O production rates (AOUR = apparent oxygen uitilization rate) (b). (a,b) White areas in the Arabian Sea represent concentrations exceeding 40 nmol kg–1. Annual N2O production (μmol m–2 yr–1) via nitrification integrated over the water column estimated using (c) depth/AOUR relationship and (d) temperature/AOUR relationship. Reference: Freing, A., Wallace, D. W. R., and Bange, H. W. (2012): Global oceanic production of nitrous oxide, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B-Biological Sciences, 367, 1245-1255, 10.1098/rstb.2011.0360. |
