STUDY OF CARBON FLUX VARIATION AT THE OCEAN-ATMOSPHERE INTERFACE IN TROPICAL, SUBTROPICAL, AND POLAR ZONES

• Grant number: 24/17489-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: November 01, 2025
• End date: June 30, 2029
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Oceanography - Chemical Oceanography
• Principal Investigator: Elisabete de Santis Braga da Graça Saraiva
• Grantee: Antonio Jeferson Muniz Almeida
• Host Institution: Instituto Oceanográfico (IO). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Antarctic waters and continental shelf areas are of utmost importance for analyzing the environmental factors that regulate CO2 and CH4 exchanges between the air-sea interfaces. These regions have a high potential for sequestering atmospheric carbon (CO2 and CH4), which depends not only on the physical and chemical properties of the water that facilitate gas solubility but also on biological activity associated with the production of particulate organic matter (POM) in the euphotic zone. The Admiralty Bay and the infrastructure provided by the Brazilian Antarctic Program make this area an excellent location for understanding the multidisciplinary scenario, featuring multiproxies related to various parameters such as greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes and their impact on marine acidification processes, climatic influences on melting processes, and the release of these gases trapped in the seabed due to water warming. In general, the set of information to be gathered will include studies on CO2 and CH4 in the atmospheric, marine, and hydrochemical compartments, phytoplankton analyses, carbon isotopic ratios, and biogeochemical cycles. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the spatial variability and fluxes of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) at the air-water interfaces between latitudes 11º28'S and 62º05'S, considering environments such as the continental shelf of South America and Admiralty Bay in the Antarctic Peninsula during the years 2024, 2025, and 2026. This research will contribute to the conservation and sustainable use of oceans, seas, and natural resources, as well as to actions aimed at combating climate change, aligning with SDG 13 and 14 of the 2030 Agenda.