2022 has been a year of climate records, all of them dangerous for the planet. It has been the fifth hottest year on record, the second in Europe. In addition, the old continent has experienced its summer with higher temperatures. The climate change It has not stopped wreaking havoc and showing that, as we feared, it has begun to advance with giant steps. Therefore, the most recent news is not surprising, but it is worrying. And it is that, according to a study carried out by Chinese and American scientiststhe oceans are warming and have reached their higher global temperatures.
This is dangerous on many levels. On the one hand, if the oceans warm up, the living things that live in them they can be greatly affected. But, on the other, the Humans We who inhabit the Earth will also be scalded.
We must not forget that ocean waters are among our greatest allies in absorbing some of the greenhouse gases of the atmosphere. Unfortunately, if they continue to warm, that absorption will get worse and worse, so these will continue to increase, adding fuel to the global warming fire and starting a damaging vicious circle.
The oceans are warming
There is something positive in this story. And it is that, luckily, the water has a great heat capacity. That means it takes a lot of energy to raise its temperature by just one degree. It’s a good thing, but the truth is that the oceans are absorbing a lot of energy.
Using two different timelines, the Chinese and American scientists They have reached the same conclusion about 2022. In that year alone, ocean waters with depths above 2,000 meters absorbed 10 zettajoules hotter than the previous year. This, as explained from Science Alertis 100 times more than the electricity consumed worldwide in a year. The reason is that the oceans absorb 90% of the excess heat from the atmosphere. But unfortunately this has a limit.
The temperature is not as extremely high as the heat that is absorbed, but there has been a remarkable increase. In fact, 2022 has been the seventh year in a row that the oceans have warmed, reaching new peaks.
other consequences
Although the high heat energy of the water can dampen what would be a more abrupt heating, there are other problems that it cannot combat. Especially one: the salinity contrast.
And it is that this increase in energy absorbed by the water generates changes in the ocean dynamics that derive in a more extreme salinity. The freshwater areas are much sweeter and the salty ones much saltier. This may seem like a trifle, but it is not, since the differences in salinity are responsible, in part, for the movement of water layers. If the layers of water do not mix as they usually do, the circulation of heat, oxygen and carbonsignificantly modifying aquatic ecosystems.
On the other hand, while the energy increases and the oceans warm up, the heat is concentrated mainly in the upper layers. These can serve as gas of hurricanes and storms; but, in addition, promote many other extreme atmospheric phenomena that already began to be noticed in 2022.
Regarding the capacity of the oceans to absorb greenhouse gases, is something finite. If the characteristics of the water are modified, there comes a point where no more can be absorbed, so these gases continue to accumulate. It is already happening and it could be even worse.
Therefore, when we hear that the oceans are warming, we should not see it as an opportunity to swim in the sea without getting cold, but as the bad news that it is.