Peak carbon dioxide levels surpass 411 parts per million for May
Carbon Dioxide in the Atmosphere Hits Record High Monthly Average
April monthly average exceeds 410 parts per million for the first time in recorded history
Video: How Scientists Measure Carbon Dioxide
In honor of the 60th anniversary of the Keeling Curve, Ralph Keeling of the Scripps CO2 Program shows how scientists make carbon dioxide measurements and gives a guided tour of the original instruments his father, Charles David Keeling, developed to start the famous record known as the Keeling Curve. In 2018, carbon dioxide levels are expected to exceed 410 parts … Read More
Rising CO2 Leading to Changes in Land Plant Photosynthesis
Suggests that plants have achieved an optimum response to rising CO2 levels in the atmosphere
Note on Reaching the Annual Low Point
We are now approaching the annual low point in the Mauna Loa CO2 curve, which typically happens around the last week of September but varies slightly from year to year.
Brief Reprieve from 400 PPM Era May Be Thanks to a Hurricane
A hurricane bearing down on Hawaii prompted operators to shut down CO2 monitoring equipment at Mauna Loa Observatory on the Big Island.
Daily Readings Have Been Restored
A failed disk that had prevented the reporting of daily readings was replaced on June 14 and the system is now running normally.
Note on Pause in Daily Readings
Readings of CO2 from Mauna Loa have been unavailable for two weeks. According to technicians with the Scripps CO2 Group, the problem is a disk failure that handles the data buffering, which has broken the data stream and valve switching that impacts daily calibration. The air data are recoverable, because the computer onboard the actual instrument is still working and … Read More
Why Has a Drop in Global CO2 Emissions Not Caused CO2 Levels in the Atmosphere to Stabilize?
Note: Readers have asked why there has been no stabilization in the measured levels of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in the atmosphere when reported emissions of CO2 have fallen. Scripps CO2 Group Director Ralph Keeling gave this response:
Comment on Recent Record-Breaking CO2 Concentrations
Levels exceeded 409 parts per million for the first time in recorded history this month