The irreversible consequences of global warming and climate change cannot be emphasized enough, but based on the results, there is still no significant change in our way of life. At least a study published on January 11 shows this, according to it
The world's oceans absorbed more heat in 2023 than in any other year since records began.
These findings are the latest update of an annual study conducted by the Institute of Atmospheric Physics (IAP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing. According to the researchers, ocean temperatures have been rising at record levels every year since 2019. A total of 34 scientists from 19 organizations in five countries participated in the research. nature.
Cheng Lijing, an oceanographer at the institute and lead author of the study, said the findings reflect the increasing amount of human-caused greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
The oceans store 90% of the excess heat in the Earth system. As long as greenhouse gas levels remain high in the atmosphere, the oceans continue to absorb energy, causing the oceans to become warmer.
It is to explain.
Cheng and his colleagues studied two sets of ocean heat content data: one from the IAP and one from the National Center for Environmental Information (NCEI) of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
IAP data shows that the amount of heat stored in the upper 2,000 meters of the oceans increased by 15 zettajoules in 2023 compared to 2022. That's a huge amount of energy – by comparison, the world's total energy consumption in 2022 was about 0.6 zettajoules. The NCEI growth value for 2023 is 9 zettajoules. The reason for the discrepancy between the two numbers is due to the calculation methods and data quality control used by organizations.
It will affect wildlife
Even small changes in the oceans can have far-reaching effects. For example, about 50% of the current rise in sea level can be attributed to ocean expansion as waters warm. Furthermore, rapid ocean warming could lead to an increase in extreme weather events, as the oceans mediate global weather patterns that determine rainfall, droughts and floods.
In addition, rising ocean temperatures could have an irreversible impact on the living world. Warming oceans could lead to changes in the distribution of marine life, causing some species to move toward polar regions or deeper waters, said William Cheung, a marine ecologist at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. The expert said that a warmer ocean could cause changes in the timing of biological events, such as migration and reproductive cycles, and affect the body size of marine organisms.
(Cover photo: Ruan Kuo/Getty Images/500px)
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