Current carbon dioxide concentration is the highest in 23 million years

In a paper published last year, Ying Cui, Brian Schubert and Anne Hope Jahren showed that the current CO₂concentration is higher than in the previous 23 million years, which is further back in time than previously recorded.

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Their study was published in the journal Geology in May 2020. The data the researchers used were based on the δ¹³C value of terrestrial C₃ plant remains. The analyses show that present-day CO₂ (412 ppmv) exceeds the highest levels that Earth experienced at least since the Miocene, 23 million years ago. This highlights the serious present-day disruption of long-established CO₂ trends within Earth’s atmosphere.

Read the whole paper here: https://pubs.geoscienceworld.org/gsa/geology/article/48/9/888/586769/A-23-m-y-record-of-low-atmospheric-CO2

Anne Hope Jahren, co-author of the study.

Published Nov. 9, 2021 5:05 PM - Last modified July 3, 2023 11:44 AM