We are excited to announce the release of Surface Ocean CO₂ Atlas (SOCAT) version 2021 which is now available via www.socat.info. SOCAT documents the increase in surface ocean CO₂ for the global oceans and coastal seas. Quantification of the global ocean CO₂ uptake to better than 0.2 Pg C yr-1 requires an accuracy of < 2 μatm for in situ surface ocean fCO₂ (fugacity of CO₂) measurements. Quality-controlled, synthesis and gridded products in SOCAT version 2021 contain 30.6 million in situ surface ocean fCO₂ measurements with an estimated accuracy of < 5 μatm. A further 2.1 million fCO₂ values with an accuracy of < 10 μatm are also available. Data collection has continued during the pandemic, albeit at a reduced rate.

We are excited to announce that on June 25 at 13:00-14:30 UTC, the Integrated Carbon Observation System - Ocean Thematic Centre (ICOS OTC) together with the IOCCP will hold a public webinar to kick off the 1st ICOS OTC pCO2 instrument inter-comparison whichwill take place at the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) in Oostende, Belgium, on 28 June - 11 July 2021.

The webinar will introduce the structure and goals of the exercise but also provide a historical overview and legacy of past pCO2 inter-comparison exercises which took place between 1995 and 2010. The webinar will be moderated by Dariia Atamanchuk (IOCCP Scientific Steering Group member, and theInter-comparison Organizing Committee member) and Artur Palacz (IOCCP Project Officer). The agenda is as follows:

Earlier this week, on World Oceans Day, the IOC-UNESCO announced the endorsement of the first programmes and contributions submitted under the UN Ocean Decade for Sustainable Development. IOCCP has played an active role in preparing five bids which were all successful:

• Observing and Predicting the Global Coastal Ocean (CoastPredict) which will “integrate observations with numerical models to produce predictions with uncertainties from extreme events to climate, for the coastal marine ecosystems (their services), biodiversity, co-designing transformative response to science and societal needs.” 
• Observing Together: Meeting Stakeholder Needs and Making Every Observation Count which will “transform ocean data access and availability by connecting ocean observers and the communities they serve, through enhanced support to both new and existing community-scale projects.” 
• Ocean Observing Co-Design: evolving ocean observing for a sustainable future which will “build the process, infrastructure and tools for co-design, creating an international capacity to evolve a truly integrated ocean observing system, matching agile observing and modelling capability with requirements.” 
• Global Ocean Oxygen Decade which will “raise global awareness about ocean deoxygenation, provide knowledge for action and develop mitigation and adaptation strategies and solutions to ensure continued provision of ecosystem services, and minimize impacts on the ocean economy through local, regional, and global efforts, including transdisciplinary research, innovative outreach, and ocean education and literacy.
• Ocean Acidification Research for Sustainability (OARS) which will “foster the development of the science of ocean acidification including the impacts on marine life and sustainability of marine ecosystems in estuarine-coastal-open ocean environments.”