Articles | Volume 21, issue 23
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-17453-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-17453-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
01 Dec 2021
Research article |
| 01 Dec 2021
| 01 Dec 2021
Was Australia a sink or source of CO2 in 2015? Data assimilation using OCO-2 satellite measurements
Yohanna Villalobos
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes, Sydney, Australia
CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, Canberra, Australia
Peter J. Rayner
School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate Extremes, Sydney, Australia
Climate & Energy College, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
Jeremy D. Silver
School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
School of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
Steven Thomas
School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
Vanessa Haverd
CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, Canberra, Australia
deceased, 19 January 2021
Jürgen Knauer
CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, Canberra, Australia
Zoë M. Loh
CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, Aspendale, Victoria, Australia
Nicholas M. Deutscher
Centre for Atmospheric Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, 2522, Australia
David W. T. Griffith
Centre for Atmospheric Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, 2522, Australia
David F. Pollard
National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research Ltd (NIWA), Lauder, New Zealand
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16 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Spatiotemporal Investigation of Near-Surface CO2 and Its Affecting Factors Over Asia F. Mustafa et al. 10.1109/TGRS.2022.3178125
- Evaluation of high‐resolution regional CO2 data assimilation–forecast system in East Asia using observing system simulation experiment and effect of observation network on simulated CO2 concentrations M. Seo & H. Kim 10.1002/qj.4987
- Spatio-temporal variation of atmospheric CO2 and its association with anthropogenic, vegetation, and climate indices over the state of Bihar, India A. Dass et al. 10.1016/j.envadv.2024.100513
- A new algorithm to generate a priori trace gas profiles for the GGG2020 retrieval algorithm J. Laughner et al. 10.5194/amt-16-1121-2023
- Improved Constraints on the Recent Terrestrial Carbon Sink Over China by Assimilating OCO‐2 XCO2 Retrievals W. He et al. 10.1029/2022JD037773
- Comparison of model-derived carbon dioxide datasets with the Orbiting Carbon Observatory 3 (OCO-3) observations F. Mustafa & M. Xu 10.1016/j.atmosres.2025.108057
- OCO‐2 Satellite‐Imposed Constraints on Terrestrial Biospheric CO2 Fluxes Over South Asia S. Philip et al. 10.1029/2021JD035035
- Was Australia a sink or source of CO2 in 2015? Data assimilation using OCO-2 satellite measurements Y. Villalobos et al. 10.5194/acp-21-17453-2021
- Interannual variability in the Australian carbon cycle over 2015–2019, based on assimilation of Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) satellite data Y. Villalobos et al. 10.5194/acp-22-8897-2022
- Impacts of Fire Frequency on Net CO2 Emissions in the Cerrado Savanna Vegetation L. Gomes et al. 10.3390/fire7080280
- Improved estimates of net ecosystem exchanges in mega-countries using GOSAT and OCO-2 observations L. Zhang et al. 10.1038/s43247-024-01910-w
- Exploring uncertainty reduction in high-resolution methane emissions in Gippsland through in-situ data: A Bayesian inverse modeling and variational assimilation method S. Aghdasi et al. 10.1016/j.atmosres.2025.107911
- Practical Guide to Measuring Wetland Carbon Pools and Fluxes S. Bansal et al. 10.1007/s13157-023-01722-2
- Using OCO-2 Observations to Constrain Regional CO2 Fluxes Estimated with the Vegetation, Photosynthesis and Respiration Model I. Konovalov et al. 10.3390/rs17020177
- The impact of industry-favoring land allocation strategy on urban carbon emissions: a city-level empirical study in China Y. Qi et al. 10.1007/s10668-024-04550-4
- Was Australia a sink or source of CO<sub>2</sub> in 2015? Data assimilation using OCO-2 satellite measurements Y. Villalobos et al. 10.5194/acp-21-17453-2021
15 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Spatiotemporal Investigation of Near-Surface CO2 and Its Affecting Factors Over Asia F. Mustafa et al. 10.1109/TGRS.2022.3178125
- Evaluation of high‐resolution regional CO2 data assimilation–forecast system in East Asia using observing system simulation experiment and effect of observation network on simulated CO2 concentrations M. Seo & H. Kim 10.1002/qj.4987
- Spatio-temporal variation of atmospheric CO2 and its association with anthropogenic, vegetation, and climate indices over the state of Bihar, India A. Dass et al. 10.1016/j.envadv.2024.100513
- A new algorithm to generate a priori trace gas profiles for the GGG2020 retrieval algorithm J. Laughner et al. 10.5194/amt-16-1121-2023
- Improved Constraints on the Recent Terrestrial Carbon Sink Over China by Assimilating OCO‐2 XCO2 Retrievals W. He et al. 10.1029/2022JD037773
- Comparison of model-derived carbon dioxide datasets with the Orbiting Carbon Observatory 3 (OCO-3) observations F. Mustafa & M. Xu 10.1016/j.atmosres.2025.108057
- OCO‐2 Satellite‐Imposed Constraints on Terrestrial Biospheric CO2 Fluxes Over South Asia S. Philip et al. 10.1029/2021JD035035
- Was Australia a sink or source of CO2 in 2015? Data assimilation using OCO-2 satellite measurements Y. Villalobos et al. 10.5194/acp-21-17453-2021
- Interannual variability in the Australian carbon cycle over 2015–2019, based on assimilation of Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) satellite data Y. Villalobos et al. 10.5194/acp-22-8897-2022
- Impacts of Fire Frequency on Net CO2 Emissions in the Cerrado Savanna Vegetation L. Gomes et al. 10.3390/fire7080280
- Improved estimates of net ecosystem exchanges in mega-countries using GOSAT and OCO-2 observations L. Zhang et al. 10.1038/s43247-024-01910-w
- Exploring uncertainty reduction in high-resolution methane emissions in Gippsland through in-situ data: A Bayesian inverse modeling and variational assimilation method S. Aghdasi et al. 10.1016/j.atmosres.2025.107911
- Practical Guide to Measuring Wetland Carbon Pools and Fluxes S. Bansal et al. 10.1007/s13157-023-01722-2
- Using OCO-2 Observations to Constrain Regional CO2 Fluxes Estimated with the Vegetation, Photosynthesis and Respiration Model I. Konovalov et al. 10.3390/rs17020177
- The impact of industry-favoring land allocation strategy on urban carbon emissions: a city-level empirical study in China Y. Qi et al. 10.1007/s10668-024-04550-4
Latest update: 12 Jul 2025
Short summary
Semi-arid ecosystems such as those in Australia are evolving and might play an essential role in the future of climate change. We use carbon dioxide concentrations derived from the OCO-2 satellite instrument and a regional transport model to understand if Australia was a carbon sink or source of CO2 in 2015. Our research's main findings suggest that Australia acted as a carbon sink of about −0.41 ± 0.08 petagrams of carbon in 2015, driven primarily by savanna and sparsely vegetated ecosystems.
Semi-arid ecosystems such as those in Australia are evolving and might play an essential role in...
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