Articles | Volume 25, issue 12
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-6445-2025
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-6445-2025
Research article
 | 
27 Jun 2025
Research article |  | 27 Jun 2025

Inverse modelling of New Zealand's carbon dioxide balance estimates a larger than expected carbon sink

Beata Bukosa, Sara Mikaloff-Fletcher, Gordon Brailsford, Dan Smale, Elizabeth D. Keller, W. Troy Baisden, Miko U. F. Kirschbaum, Donna L. Giltrap, Lìyǐn Liáng, Stuart Moore, Rowena Moss, Sylvia Nichol, Jocelyn Turnbull, Alex Geddes, Daemon Kennett, Dóra Hidy, Zoltán Barcza, Louis A. Schipper, Aaron M. Wall, Shin-Ichiro Nakaoka, Hitoshi Mukai, and Andrea Brandon

Related authors

IRIS analyser assessment reveals sub-hourly variability of isotope ratios in carbon dioxide at Baring Head, New Zealand's atmospheric observatory in the Southern Ocean
Peter Sperlich, Gordon W. Brailsford, Rowena C. Moss, John McGregor, Ross J. Martin, Sylvia Nichol, Sara Mikaloff-Fletcher, Beata Bukosa, Magda Mandic, C. Ian Schipper, Paul Krummel, and Alan D. Griffiths
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1631–1656, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1631-2022,https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1631-2022, 2022
Short summary
An improved carbon greenhouse gas simulation in GEOS-Chem version 12.1.1
Beata Bukosa, Jenny Fisher, Nicholas Deutscher, and Dylan Jones
Geosci. Model Dev. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2021-173,https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-2021-173, 2021
Revised manuscript not accepted
Short summary
Satellite and ground-based measurements of XCO2 in a remote semiarid region of Australia
Voltaire A. Velazco, Nicholas M. Deutscher, Isamu Morino, Osamu Uchino, Beata Bukosa, Masataka Ajiro, Akihide Kamei, Nicholas B. Jones, Clare Paton-Walsh, and David W. T. Griffith
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 11, 935–946, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-11-935-2019,https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-11-935-2019, 2019
Short summary
Simultaneous shipborne measurements of CO2, CH4 and CO and their application to improving greenhouse-gas flux estimates in Australia
Beata Bukosa, Nicholas M. Deutscher, Jenny A. Fisher, Dagmar Kubistin, Clare Paton-Walsh, and David W. T. Griffith
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 7055–7072, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-7055-2019,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-7055-2019, 2019
Short summary

Related subject area

Subject: Gases | Research Activity: Atmospheric Modelling and Data Analysis | Altitude Range: Troposphere | Science Focus: Physics (physical properties and processes)
Improved understanding of anthropogenic and biogenic carbonyl sulfide (COS) fluxes in western Europe from long-term continuous mixing ratio measurements
Antoine Berchet, Isabelle Pison, Camille Huselstein, Clément Narbaud, Marine Remaud, Sauveur Belviso, Camille Abadie, and Fabienne Maignan
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 7499–7525, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-7499-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-7499-2025, 2025
Short summary
The skill at modeling an extremely high ozone episode varies substantially amongst ensemble simulation
Jinhui Gao and Hui Xiao
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 7387–7401, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-7387-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-7387-2025, 2025
Short summary
Quantifying transboundary transport flux of CO over the Tibetan Plateau: variabilities and drivers
Zhenda Sun, Hao Yin, Zhongfeng Pan, Chongyang Li, Xiao Lu, Ke Liu, Youwen Sun, and Cheng Liu
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 6823–6842, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-6823-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-6823-2025, 2025
Short summary
Combined CO2 measurement record indicates Amazon forest carbon uptake is offset by savanna carbon release
Santiago Botía, Saqr Munassar, Thomas Koch, Danilo Custodio, Luana S. Basso, Shujiro Komiya, Jost V. Lavric, David Walter, Manuel Gloor, Giordane Martins, Stijn Naus, Gerbrand Koren, Ingrid T. Luijkx, Stijn Hantson, John B. Miller, Wouter Peters, Christian Rödenbeck, and Christoph Gerbig
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 6219–6255, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-6219-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-6219-2025, 2025
Short summary
Distinct structures of interannual variations in stratosphere-to-troposphere ozone transport induced by the Tibetan Plateau thermal forcing
Qingjian Yang, Tiangliang Zhao, Yongqing Bai, Kai Meng, Yuehan Luo, Zhijie Tian, Xiaoyun Sun, Weikang Fu, Kai Yang, and Jun Hu
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-737,https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-737, 2025
Short summary

Cited articles

Baker, D. F., Law, R. M., Gurney, K. R., Rayner, P., Peylin, P., Denning, A. S., Bousquet, P., Bruhwiler, L., Chen, Y.-H., Ciais, P., Fung, I. Y., Heimann, M., John, J., Maki, T., Maksyutov, S., Masarie, K., Prather, M., Pak, B., Taguchi, S., and Zhu, Z.: TransCom 3 inversion intercomparison: Impact of transport model errors on the interannual variability of regional CO2 fluxes, 1988–2003, Global Biogeochem. Cy., 20, GB1002, https://doi.org/10.1029/2004GB002439, 2006. 
Berchet, A., Pison, I., Chevallier, F., Bousquet, P., Conil, S., Geever, M., Laurila, T., Lavrič, J., Lopez, M., Moncrieff, J., Necki, J., Ramonet, M., Schmidt, M., Steinbacher, M., and Tarniewicz, J.: Towards better error statistics for atmospheric inversions of methane surface fluxes, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 13, 7115–7132, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-13-7115-2013, 2013. 
Bergamaschi, P., Krol, M., Dentener, F., Vermeulen, A., Meinhardt, F., Graul, R., Ramonet, M., Peters, W., and Dlugokencky, E. J.: Inverse modelling of national and European CH4 emissions using the atmospheric zoom model TM5, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 5, 2431–2460, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-5-2431-2005, 2005. 
Download
Short summary
We used atmospheric measurements and inverse modelling to estimate New Zealand's carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and removals from 2011 to 2020. Our study reveals that New Zealand's land absorbs more CO2 than previously estimated, particularly in areas dominated by indigenous forests. Our results highlight gaps in current national CO2 estimates and methods, suggesting a need for further research to improve emissions reports and refine approaches to track progress toward climate mitigation goals.
Share
Altmetrics
Final-revised paper
Preprint