Assessment of wintertime carbon flux direction in the fjord system of Hood Canal in Washington

Abstract

The relationship between carbon dioxide and the mechanisms behind its exchange between the ocean and atmosphere benefits the study and understanding of climate change given Carbon dioxide’s behavior as a greenhouse gas and its sequestration and release in fjordlike estuaries. This study was held along the center of Hood Canal, Washington, USA in a total of ten stations during the Winter of 2018, to measure total carbon in the estuary and determine the direction of carbon flux between the water and local atmosphere. Mean carbon flux as CO2 was determined to be 24.94 mmol C / m2 / day out of the ocean, contributing to the local atmosphere as a source. Biological implications can be drawn given supporting data such as the low dissolved oxygen saturation of 67.7%.