carbon dioxide is a what
Carbon dioxide (chemical formula CO2) is a colorless, odorless gas vital to life on Earth. This naturally occurring chemical compound is composed of a carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms.arbon dioxide dissolves in the ocean to form carbonic acid (H 2 CO 3), bicarbonate (HCO 3 â) and carbonate (CO 3 2â). There is about fifty times as much carbon dissolved in the oceans as exists in the atmosphere.