Tuesday 17 May 2022 02:40 PM 'Deep ocean' water will warm by a further 0.36°F in the next 50 years, ... trends now
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The deep ocean could warm by a further 0.36°F (0.2°C) in the next 50 years, as it continues to absorb the vast majority of 'excess heat' created by humans, a new study warns.
Oceans have already absorbed about 90 per cent of the warming caused by humans since the Industrial Revolution began.
Much of this heat is stored in the 'deep ocean' – defined as water more than 2,300ft (700m) below the surface.
The resulting underwater temperature increase could cause sea levels to rise and have devastating consequences for ecosystems, the researchers from the University of Exeter and the University of Brest warn.
Deep-sea plants and animals which depend on oxygen may no longer be able to survive, and the change will also affect the sea's currents and chemistry.
Much of the 'excess heat' stored in the subtropical North Atlantic is in the deep ocean, below 2,300ft, new research suggests.
'As our planet warms, it's vital to understand how the excess heat taken up by the ocean is redistributed in the ocean interior all the way from the surface to the bottom, and it is important to take into account the deep ocean to assess the growth of Earth's "energy imbalance",' said Dr Marie-José Messias, from the University of Exeter.
'As well as finding that the deep ocean is holding much of this excess
