CURRENT STATUS AND PAST TRENDS OF THE CARBON CYCLE

Reference

Sabine, C.S., M. He mann, P. Artaxo, D . Bakker, C.-T.A Chen, C. B. Field, N. Gruber, C. LeQuere, R. G. Prinn, J. E. Richey, P. Romero-Lankao, J. Sathaye and R. Valentini, Current Status and Past Trends of the Carbon Cycle. In: Toward CO2 Stabilization: Issues, Strategies, and Consequences, Eds: C. B. Field and M. R. Raupach, Island Press, 2003.

Abstract
Processes relevant to the carbon cycle span the range of scales from molecular to global. They also include a wide range of biological, chemical and physical phenomena, as well as interactions between humans and the environment. To better comprehend and predict potential global carbon cycle changes in the future, we must first appreciate how the system is operating today. Our understanding of the current carbon cycle is improving very rapidly thanks to aggressive research in this field. This chapter examines our current understanding of the global carbon cycle and the processes relevant to controlling atmospheric CO2 concentrations.
The third assessment report of the IPCC recently compiled a basic global carbon budget [Prentice et al., 2001]. While that budget reflected the state-of-the-art at that time, this chapter presents a revised budget based on new information from model studies and oceanographic observations. Although the basic global budget provides some indication of the overall carbon balance between the major active reservoirs of land, atmosphere, and ocean, it does not adequately reflect the multitude of exchange fluxes or processes responsible for this global budget. A somewhat more comprehensive representation of the connections between the reservoirs together with our current understanding of the biogeochemical processes and human driving forces controlling these exchanges is presented in this chapter.

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