Carbon Dioxide On Niwot Ridge
Niwot Ridge is home to the world’s second-longest record of atmospheric carbon dioxide (C02). Researchers began monitoring CO2 on the ridge in the 1967, and monitoring continues to this day. The longest continuous record of atmospheric C02 began in 1958 and is from the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii.
Long-term Trends in Carbon Dioxide
The figure below, generated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), visualizes long-term CO2 data collected from Niwot Ridge. Circles indicate data thought to be “regionally representative of a remote, well-mixed troposphere,” green crosses indicate data that are likely “not indicative of background conditions, and represent poorly mixed air masses influenced by local or regional anthropogenic sources or strong local biospheric sources or sinks,” and orange data are preliminary.
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If you have questions about the data presented on this page, please email the Niwot Ridge LTER. To learn more about research, education, and outreach conducted by the Niwot Ridge LTER, please visit our website.