evidence: "Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are increasing faster than the Southern Ocean can keep up." May 2024, AccessScience, McGraw Hill, https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.aBR2405151. [...] Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are increasing faster than the Southern Ocean can keep up. McGraw Hill’s AccessScience; 2024. https://doi.org/10.1036/1097-8542.aBR2405151 [...] Through a chemical analysis of Antarctic ice, a group of scientists from Oregon State University has discovered that Earth’s current rate of atmospheric carbon dioxide increase is 10 times faster than it has been at any point in the past 50,000 years. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a greenhouse gas; this molecule traps heat in the atmosphere and thus contributes to the warming of Earth’s climate. Atmospheric CO2 levels have fluctuated significantly throughout geologic time. However, accumulating evidence comparing the most notable past peak levels to current trends shows an upturn that threatens ecological disaster in coming decades and centuries. See also: Antarctica; Atmosphere; Carbon dioxide; Greenhouse effect