Flux of oxygen across the air-sea interface as determined by the analysis of dissolved components in sea water.

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Abstract
The exchange rate of O2 across the air-sea interface was determined from the dissolved O2 content of sea water in the Funka Bay [Japan] by applying a closed system model to the bay water. The change in dissolved O2 resulting from the biological processes was evaluated by the change in phosphate. The observations during the period from 1973-1980 show a marked seasonal variation in the exchange constants. The mean thickness of the surface film or the molecular diffusion layer at the interface calculated from the exchange constants is 12 .mu.m in winter; it is 45 .mu.m in summer. Both values are greater than those obtained from laboratory experiments and the field observations of radon profiles but nearly equal to the value calculated from the mean residence time of CO2 in the atmosphere. The seasonal variation is due to the roughness of the sea surface, suggesting that the exchange constant seems to be proportional to the square or the cube of wind velocity. The bay is a source of O2 to the atmosphere, where the net production of O2 is 1701/m2 per yr.

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