Another Record: Ocean Warming Continues through 2021 despite La Nina Conditions
Type | Article | ||||||||
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Date | 2022-03 | ||||||||
Language | English | ||||||||
Author(s) | Cheng Lijing1, 2, Abraham John3, Trenberth Kevin E.4, Fasullo John4, Boyer Tim5, Mann Michael E.6, Zhu Jiang1, 2, Wang Fan2, 7, Locarnini Ricardo5, Li Yuanlong2, 7, Zhang Bin2, 7, Tan Zhetao1, 2, Yu Fujiang8, Wan Liying8, Chen Xingrong8, Song Xiangzhou9, Liu Yulong10, Reseghetti Franco11, Simoncelli Simona12, Gouretski Viktor1, Chen Gengxin13, Mishonov Alexey5, 14, Reagan Jim5 | ||||||||
Affiliation(s) | 1 : Chinese Acad Sci, Int Ctr Climate & Environm Sci, Inst Atmospher Phys, Beijing 100029, Peoples R China. 2 : Chinese Acad Sci, Ctr Ocean Megasci, Qingdao 266071, Peoples R China. 3 : Univ St Thomas, Sch Engn, St Paul, MN 55105, USA. 4 : Natl Ctr Atmospher Res, Boulder, CO 80307, USA. 5 : NOAA, Natl Ctr Environm Informat, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA. 6 : Penn State Univ, Dept Meteorol & Atmospher Sci, University Pk, PA 16802, USA. 7 : Chinese Acad Sci, Inst Oceanol, Qingdao 266071, Peoples R China. 8 : Minist Nat Resources China, Natl Marine Environm Forecasting Ctr, Beijing 100081, Peoples R China. 9 : Hohai Univ, Coll Oceanog, Nanjing 210098, Peoples R China. 10 : Natl Marine Data & Informat Serv, Tianjin 300171, Peoples R China. 11 : Italian Natl Agcy New Technol, Energy & Sustainable Econ Dev, S Teresa Res Ctr, I-19032 Lerici, Italy. 12 : Ist Nazl Geofis & Vulcanol, Sede Bologna, I-40128 Bologna, Italy. 13 : Chinese Acad Sci, South China Sea Inst Oceanol, Guangzhou 510301, Peoples R China. 14 : Univ Maryland, Ess CISESS MD, College Pk, MD 20742 ,USA. |
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Source | Advances In Atmospheric Sciences (0256-1530) (Science Press), 2022-03 , Vol. 39 , N. 3 , P. 373-385 | ||||||||
DOI | 10.1007/s00376-022-1461-3 | ||||||||
WOS© Times Cited | 43 | ||||||||
Keyword(s) | La Nina, ocean heat, ocean warming, attribution, observation | ||||||||
Abstract | The increased concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere from human activities traps heat within the climate system and increases ocean heat content (OHC). Here, we provide the first analysis of recent OHC changes through 2021 from two international groups. The world ocean, in 2021, was the hottest ever recorded by humans, and the 2021 annual OHC value is even higher than last year's record value by 14 +/- 11 ZJ (1 zetta J = 10(21) J) using the IAP/CAS dataset and by 16 +/- 10 ZJ using NCEI/NOAA dataset. The long-term ocean warming is larger in the Atlantic and Southern Oceans than in other regions and is mainly attributed, via climate model simulations, to an increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations. The year-to-year variation of OHC is primarily tied to the El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO). In the seven maritime domains of the Indian, Tropical Atlantic, North Atlantic, Northwest Pacific, North Pacific, Southern oceans, and the Mediterranean Sea, robust warming is observed but with distinct inter-annual to decadal variability. Four out of seven domains showed record-high heat content in 2021. The anomalous global and regional ocean warming established in this study should be incorporated into climate risk assessments, adaptation, and mitigation. |
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