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How climate change alters ocean chemistry In order to determine the effect of increasing atmospheric CO 2concentrations onthe ocean, an international research team enriched seawater with CO 2in floating tanks offSpitsbergen, and studied the effects on organisms.oceans or, in chemical terms, a decline in the pH value.This could have a detrimental impact on marine organismsand ecosystems. Carbonate-secreting organisms areparticularly susceptible to this because an acidifyingenvironment is less favorable for carbonate production.Laboratory experiments have shown that acidificationhas a negative effect on the growth of corals and otherorganisms. The topic of ocean acidification is presentlybeing studied in large research programmes worldwide.Conclusive results relating to the feedback effectsbetween climate and acidification are thus not yet available.This is also the case for the impact of ocean warming.There are many indications for significant feedbackeffects here, but too little solid knowledge to draw anyrobust quantitative conclusions.We will have to carry out focussed scientific studies tosee what impact global change will have on the naturalcarbon cycle in the ocean. It would be naïve to assumethat this is insignificant and irrelevant for the futureclimate of our planet. To the contrary, our limited knowledgeof the relationships should motivate us to study theocean even more intensely and to develop new methodsof observation.