NASA: tropical forests lose 3.5 Gt CO2 per 1°C annually
NASA just found that tropical forests aren't pulling in as much carbon dioxide (CO2) as they used to, thanks to rising global temperatures.
Their study looked at decades of data and discovered that for every one-degree-Celsius increase in temperature, an extra 3.5 billion metric tons of CO2 gets released into the air each year.
Carbon climate feedback undermines forest sinks
This creates a "carbon-climate feedback" cycle: hotter weather makes forests less efficient at soaking up CO2, which means even more emissions from plants and soil.
Co-author Pep Canadell explained that warmer temperatures make forests work less efficiently.
Professor Steve Sherwood said these findings help us understand yearly CO2 changes and strengthen climate models, showing why cutting emissions is urgent.
During El Nino years, forests absorbed less CO2 than usual, so their ability to act as a carbon sink drops when things heat up.