Introducing the Modern Ocean Sedimentary Inventory and Archive of Carbon (MOSAIC v.2.0) database and its initial applications

Marine sediments play a crucial role in the global carbon cycle by acting as the gateway from short- to long-term reservoirs of both terrestrial and marine organic carbon (OC). To understand the spatiotemporal variability, sources, composition and reactivity of OC in marine sediments, a curated and harmonized database of OC content and associated parameters is needed, especially considering the logistical challenges and costs of retrieving samples at sea. This has prompted the development of the Modern Ocean Sediment Archive and Inventory of Carbon (MOSAIC) database. Here we present an updated version, MOSAIC v.2.0, which stores variables such as OC content, its isotopic composition (δ¹³C, Δ¹⁴C), sedimentological parameters (e.g., grain size, mineral surface area), and associated molecular signatures (e.g., lignin, fatty acid, alkane biomarkers). MOSAIC v.2.0 offers a broad spatiotemporal coverage, with data from more than 21’000 individual sediment cores collected since the 1950s, providing a key tool to assess the role of coastal and marine sedimentary organic carbon in the global carbon cycle. A new and interactive open-access web-interface to the database will be presented, along with Python and R packages that allow users to integrate MOSAIC in their data processing workflows. Finally, initial applications of MOSAIC (v.2.0) to understand spatial patterns in the geochemical composition of marine sediment on regional and global scales will also be illustrated.