Proposal and Summary

This project's purpose will be to determine the air-sea gas exchange of carbon dioxide (CO₂), to detect the importance of terrestrial sources of the carbon to the system and to quantify the primary productivity in Glacier Bay, Alaska. Knowing the air to sea gas exchange of CO₂ will establish if, and to what extent the bay is acting as a sink for atmospheric CO₂. Analysis of the dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) stable isotope ratio will reveal the signature of biological CO₂ respiration. Additionally, the carbon isotope ratio of particulate organic carbon (POC) samples will be measured to determine the origin of organic carbon in the bay. Relating all of these parameters will outline the primary productivity and carbon cycle of Glacier Bay. National Parks Service (NPS) stations will be surveyed for surface water, and selected stations will also be sampled from a range of depths starting just below the mixed layer. DIC samples will be gathered at all of the proposed stations and depths. The surface stations will also have water collected for alkalinity measurement and hand net tows performed for collection of POC. Measuring gas exchange between the ocean and atmosphere has been occurring since the mid 1950's as a way of establishing how the ocean acts to buffer atmospheric CO₂. This has become even more relevant since the 1970's, when interest in anthropogenic CO₂ inputs began to increase (GLOBALVIEW 2002; Takahashi et al. 2002). Being able to understand the complete carbon cycle of a body of water establishes a baseline for future research, as well as a guide for policy making in terms of forestry, riparian zone development, and fisheries (Miller 1995).

Project Summary and Proposal

Main Page Annotated Bibliography Topic Summary Rough Outline Proposal / Summary	Project Summary This project's purpose will be to determine the air-sea gas exchange of carbon dioxide (CO₂), to detect the importance of terrestrial sources of the carbon to the system and to quantify the primary productivity in Glacier Bay, Alaska. Knowing the air to sea gas exchange of CO₂ will establish if, and to what extent the bay is acting as a sink for atmospheric CO₂. Analysis of the dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) stable isotope ratio will reveal the signature of biological CO₂ respiration. Additionally, the carbon isotope ratio of particulate organic carbon (POC) samples will be measured to determine the origin of organic carbon in the bay. Relating all of these parameters will outline the primary productivity and carbon cycle of Glacier Bay. National Parks Service (NPS) stations will be surveyed for surface water, and selected stations will also be sampled from a range of depths starting just below the mixed layer. DIC samples will be gathered at all of the proposed stations and depths. The surface stations will also have water collected for alkalinity measurement and hand net tows performed for collection of POC. Measuring gas exchange between the ocean and atmosphere has been occurring since the mid 1950's as a way of establishing how the ocean acts to buffer atmospheric CO₂. This has become even more relevant since the 1970's, when interest in anthropogenic CO₂ inputs began to increase (GLOBALVIEW 2002; Takahashi et al. 2002). Being able to understand the complete carbon cycle of a body of water establishes a baseline for future research, as well as a guide for policy making in terms of forestry, riparian zone development, and fisheries (Miller 1995). Final Proposal
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