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Article: Carbon dioxide marches to an uneven beat. (climatic changes moderate atmospheric carbon dioxide buildup)
- Article from:
- Science News
- Article date:
- June 24, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 Science Service, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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As the global population of people and cars climbs ever higher, so do emissions of carbon dioxide, the notorious greenhouse gas. Since 1958, when scientists first started monitoring its concentration, carbon dioxide has accumulated in the atmosphere almost in lockstep with the growing use of gasoline and other fossil fuels.
But in the last 15 years, the carbon dioxide buildup has surged ahead of fossil fuel emissions and then lagged behind--changes that have puzzled atmospheric scientists and hampered efforts to predict climate.
A team of researchers now reports measurements that may explain why concentrations of this gas have followed such an uneven upward ...