Appropriate Treatment Of Uncertainty And Ambiguity; A Flexible System For Climatological Calculations In Response To An On-Going Debate On The Transfer Velocity, K.
Abstract
Air-sea fluxes of gases, including carbon dioxide, are commonly calculated using an air-sea flux equation. Within this equation, fluxes are proportional to a transfer velocity, k. We can use Earth observation or in situ data for the calculation of the fluxes, only if we adopt a suitable algorithm that typically describes the dependence of k on wind speed and water temperature. Unfortunately, appropriate algorithms for the transfer velocity of carbon dioxide are debated. Since there is a large body of data, but the perceived information is contradictory, more data is unlikely to resolve the debate swiftly. This ambiguity poses a dilemma for estimation of fluxes and their uncertainty. A twofold approach is adopted. Firstly, we examine critically both algorithms and outline an alternative more mechanistic approach. Secondly, we construct an open system for the calculation of air-sea fluxes that enables a very broad range of algorithms to be applied.
- Publication:
-
ESA Living Planet Symposium
- Pub Date:
- December 2013
- Bibcode:
- 2013ESASP.722E.182W