The Surface Ocean CO2 Atlas (SOCAT) version 2022 has been released via www.socat.info. The ocean absorbs a quarter of the global CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions from human activity, therefore, this community-led Atlas is key for the quantification of ocean CO2 uptake and its variation, now and in the future.
SOCAT version 2022 has quality-controlled in situ surface ocean fCO2 (fugacity of CO2) measurements made on ships, moorings, autonomous and drifting surface platforms for the global ocean and coastal seas from 1957 to 2021. The main SOCAT synthesis and gridded products contain 33.7 million fCO2 values with an estimated accuracy of < 5 μatm. A further 6.4 million fCO2 sensor data with an accuracy of 5 to 10 μatm are separately available.
SOCAT is used for quantification of ocean CO2 uptake and ocean acidification and for evaluation of climate models and sensor data. The SOCAT synthesis products are a crucial step in the value chain based on in situ inorganic carbon measurements of the ocean, which provides policy makers with vital information in climate negotiations.