Published 2026-05-01 · data 2023 · percent of pre-industrial surface pH
The ocean is thirty percent more acidic
CO₂ dissolves into seawater as carbonic acid. Shell-forming creatures feel it first.
pH is logarithmic — a 0.1 drop is a ~30% jump in acidity. This grid divides surface ocean acidity change (2023 snapshot) into colored bands — Anthropogenic acidification and Natural baseline — using equal squares so you compare shares, not country size on a map.
1 cell = 0.1 percent of pre-industrial surface pH (0.1% of surface ocean acidity change) · 1,000 cells
Context
The 2023 figures from NOAA ocean acidification put Natural baseline at 70% of surface ocean acidity change and Anthropogenic acidification at 30% — about 100 percent of pre-industrial surface pH in this edition's rounding.
NOAA: ~30% increase in H⁺ since industrial era (~0.1 pH drop).
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Credit this grid as Inagrid — https://inagrid.com/e/2026-05-01-ocean-acidification