A chart from Scripps shows the carbon dioxide level hovering near 400 ppm in the first week of May. (Image courtesy of Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego)

MEDIA RELEASE

For the first time since measurements began in 1958 by acclaimed researcher Dr. Charles David Keeling of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego, the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) at Hawaii’s Mauna Loa Observatory surpassed 400 parts per million (ppm).

In collaboration with Scripps Institution of Oceanography, weather and climate technology company Earth NetworksSM is monitoring greenhouse gas measurements and operating the observation system in place at the Mauna Loa site.

As the oldest continuous carbon dioxide (CO2) measurement station in the world, Mauna Loa is the primary global benchmark site for monitoring the increase of this potent heat-trapping gas. The concentration of carbon dioxide has increased every year since scientists started making measurements at Mauna Loa.

The rate of increase has accelerated since the measurements started, from about 0.7 ppm per year in the late 1950s to 2.1 ppm per year during the last 10 years.

NOAA instruments recorded a reading of 400.03 ppm for May 9. Instruments operated by Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego recorded a reading of 400.08 ppm for the same 24-hour period.

“Our company’s mission is to Take the Pulse of the Planet. As part of our ongoing work with public and private entities alike, we are supporting and supplementing scientific initiatives to measure greenhouse gases in collaboration with Scripps Institution of Oceanography,” says Earth Networks President and CEO Bob Marshall. “We are honored that our measurement system is being used and relied on for what could be considered one of the most important scientific measurements in our world. However, reaching the 400 ppm level is an unfortunate milestone in our history, and we hope this will spur additional investment and research into better understanding the state of our planet.”

Earth Networks established a collaboration with Scripps Institution of Oceanography to deploy the world’s largest greenhouse gas observation network in January 2011.

— Find out more:
www.earthnetworks.com