New research shows plants absorb 31% more carbon dioxide than previously thought

Nature's carbon-capturing machines are working overtime. Plants worldwide are absorbing about 31% more carbon dioxide than scientists previously estimated, according to research published in Nature. This discovery changes our understanding of Earth's carbon cycle and could reshape climate change predictions.

The new study, led by Cornell University with support from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, puts plants' annual carbon dioxide uptake at 157 petagrams — equivalent to the emissions from 238 million gas-powered vehicles. That's a dramatic jump from the 40-year-old estimate of 120 petagrams that scientists had been using. Researchers cracked this carbon puzzle by tracking a proxy: a compound called carbonyl sulfide (OCS) that follows the same path through leaves as CO2 but is easier to measure.

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Tropical rainforests emerged as the biggest surprise in the findings. "Pan-tropical rainforests accounted for the biggest difference between previous estimates and the new figures," says Lianhong Gu, a distinguished staff scientist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The discovery suggests these lush forests are even more crucial carbon sinks than satellite data had indicated.

The implications for climate science are significant. "Nailing down our estimates of GPP with reliable global-scale observations is a critical step in improving our predictions of future CO2 in the atmosphere, and the consequences for global climate," says Peter Thornton, Corporate Fellow at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The findings spotlight just how vital protecting and restoring forests could be in the fight against climate change.

"It's important that we get a good handle on global GPP since that initial land carbon uptake affects the rest of our representations of Earth's carbon cycle," writes Gu. "This work represents a major step forward in terms of providing a definitive number."

Previously:
• A hole in the ground: Storing carbon dioxide thousands of feet below Illinois
• Supermarkets running out of soft drinks due to carbon dioxide shortage, possible crisis on the horizon
• Butter made from carbon dioxide instead of animal fat
• It's becoming much cheaper to suck carbon dioxide from the air
• Animation of atmospheric carbon dioxide
• A startup wants to make lab-grown steak out of captured carbon emissions