# Atmospheric O2 reveals a strengthening ocean carbon sink and a stagnant net land sink since 1990

Source: [science.org](https://www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1126/science.aed9544?af=R) · 2026-11-12 · Life
Page: https://themorning.science/story/atmospheric-o2-reveals-a-strengthening-ocean-carbon-sink-and-a-stagnant-net-land-99d5d3c3dcf9015f
Kind: research · Impact: medium

## In brief

- A study in Science uses atmospheric oxygen (O2) measurements to track carbon sinks.
- The study reports that the ocean carbon sink has strengthened since 1990.
- The study reports that the net land carbon sink has been stagnant since 1990.

## Why it matters

Separating ocean and land carbon sinks helps science readers judge how much of human CO2 emissions the planet absorbs and how that is changing.

## Timeline

- 2026-11-12: Study published in Science (vol. 394, issue 6825, pp. 799-803)

## Coverage

- [Atmospheric O2 reveals a strengthening ocean carbon sink and a stagnant net land sink since 1990](https://www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1126/science.aed9544?af=R) — science.org, 2026-11-12

Tags: carbon sink, ocean, atmospheric oxygen, carbon cycle, climate

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Brief generated by AI (claude-haiku-5-5) from the reporting listed under Coverage. Headlines belong to their publishers. The Morning Science – https://themorning.science