In the present work the differences between the pCO2 in the sea surface water and the atmospheric CO2 mixing ratio were determined on the basis of measurements of Meteor expedition 32 in the North Atlantic in 1973. These Meteor measurements were complemented by a compilation of CO2 data that has been available to us on the North Atlantic since the beginning of this century. A thorough evaluation of these data shows that, like the increase of the CO2 mixing ratio in the atmosphere, there is also a general increase of pCO2 in the surface water of the North Atlantic. Although the CO2 differences across the air-sea interface have been measured by various methods since 1903, they can still be compared and, at the same time, be used to derive their geographical distribution on the North Atlantic. Based on these data, net CO2 fluxes of 0.16¿1015 g C a-1 from the atmosphere into the North Atlantic between the equator and 40¿N and of 0.45¿1015 g C a-1 north of 40¿N are derived. The total net CO2 uptake of 0.6¿1015 g C a-1 corresponds to 13% of the present industrial Co2 emission per year.