We would like to draw your attention to a special session at the 2009
Goldschmidt Conference in Davos, Switzerland (June 21-26).
Theme 13: Global Geochemical Challenges: Past Record and Future Impact
Session 13a: Ocean Acidification: Past, Present and Future
Keynote: Lee Kump (Pennsylvania State University)
The ocean will absorb increasing amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere if
fossil fuel emissions continue unabated. The resulting decrease in the
pH of surface waters, dubbed ‘ocean acidification’ will push ocean
geochemistry outside of the envelope of at least the last few tens of
millions of years. There is concern regarding what the implications such
changes in environmental conditions will have for living organisms in
the ocean, particularly those which make calcium carbonate (CaCO3)
shells and skeletons. What do we know about past records of ocean
acidification? How large were these carbon cycle perturbations and how
long did they last? How fast will ocean acidification affect changes in
calcite and aragonite saturation horizons in the future and when will
areas of the surface ocean become undersaturated? This session welcomes
all possible aspects of analysis of ocean acidification, from geological
records of past events via measurements of current changes in ocean’s pH
and or calcification to biogeochemical models.
The deadline for electronic abstract submission is February 22, 2009.
(see http://www.goldschmidt2009.org/abstracts/instructions for details).
We hope to welcome many of you to our session
Guy Munhoven
Andy Ridgwell
Daniela Schmidt
