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The 2019 observations show that the annual average value of the CO2 concentration in the atmosphere in 2019 was 411.9 million parts (ppm) at Zeppelin in Svalbard, and is 2.6 ppm higher than the previous year.
At Birkenes in Agder, the concentration is 416.1 ppm, 0.9 more than the previous year, shows the report that the Norwegian Institute for Air Research (Nilu) has produced on behalf of the Norwegian Environment Agency.
CO2 concentration increases
– We have observed new CO2 records in Zeppelin every year since 2001, says lead researcher Cathrine Lund Myhre of Nilu in a press release.
– As long as we emit more CO2 than is absorbed, the concentration in the atmosphere will continue to increase, he continues.
In order for the world to stay below the 2 degree limit, the CO2 concentration must stabilize at a level below 400 ppm over time.
Higher methane concentration
In the case of methane, annual mean values were measured at 1961.2 billion parts (ppb) at Birkenes and 1952.9 ppb at Zeppelin.
Compared to the 2018 level, this represents an increase in Zeppelin of 14.3 ppb, the highest annual increase ever recorded. At Birkenes, the increase was also significant, at 8.2 ppb.
According to Lund Myhre, the increased methane concentration remains a little mystery to researchers.
– We do not know for sure if the increase is due to methane emissions from human activity, or if it is due to the fact that climate change has started processes in nature that emit more methane into the atmosphere, says Lund Myhre.
