Articles | Volume 18, issue 4
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-1407-2021
© 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/bg-18-1407-2021
© Author(s) 2021. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Technical note
| 
24 Feb 2021
Technical note |
| 24 Feb 2021
| 24 Feb 2021
Technical note: Interpreting pH changes
Andrea J. Fassbender
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, 7700 Sandholdt Road, Moss
Landing, CA 95039, USA
James C. Orr
LSCE/IPSL, Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement,
CEA-CNRS-UVSQ, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
Andrew G. Dickson
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San
Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
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- Emergent interactive effects of climate change and contaminants in coastal and ocean ecosystems V. Hatje et al. 10.3389/fmars.2022.936109
- Limits and CO2equilibration of near-coast alkalinity enhancement J. He & M. Tyka 10.5194/bg-20-27-2023
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- Dissimilar Sensitivities of Ocean Acidification Metrics to Anthropogenic Carbon Accumulation in the Central North Pacific Ocean and California Current Large Marine Ecosystem M. Arroyo et al. 10.1029/2022GL097835
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- Estuarine acidification mirrors the ocean trend and correlates with the El Niño Southern Oscillation J. Grear 10.1002/lno.70167
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- S.P.L. Sørensen, the pH concept and its early history H. Kragh 10.1007/s10698-025-09532-6
- Progression of ocean interior acidification over the industrial era J. Müller & N. Gruber 10.1126/sciadv.ado3103
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Latest update: 06 Oct 2025
Short summary
A decline in upper-ocean pH with time is typically ascribed to ocean acidification. A more quantitative interpretation is often confused by failing to recognize the implications of pH being a logarithmic transform of hydrogen ion concentration rather than an absolute measure. This can lead to an unwitting misinterpretation of pH data. We provide three real-world examples illustrating this and recommend the reporting of both hydrogen ion concentration and pH in studies of ocean chemical change.
A decline in upper-ocean pH with time is typically ascribed to ocean acidification. A more...
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