Why is the Atlantic Ocean cooling so rapidly?
2024-08-27
한어Русский языкEnglishFrançaisIndonesianSanskrit日本語DeutschPortuguêsΕλληνικάespañolItalianoSuomalainenLatina
Reference News reported on August 27 According to the Spanish newspaper ABC's website on August 24, global warming has been the biggest headache for climate experts over the past few decades. But contrary to what many people think, the key to the problem is neither rising temperatures nor sudden and man-made changes in weather patterns. This is why the drop in temperatures in the Atlantic is worrying, and very worrying. Specifically, the temperature in the equatorial Atlantic is dropping sharply.
At the start of 2024, sea temperatures in the region were very high, maintaining a trend from 2023 that saw 90% of the excess heat from climate change stored in the ocean. However, sea temperatures in the region quickly cooled in May, a trend that continued in June, July and August.
In fact, data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows that this is the most dramatic temperature transition ever recorded in this region.
Many experts pointed out that if the temperature is 0.5 degrees Celsius lower than the average temperature, it will be officially regarded as a La Nina phenomenon. Strangely, the trade winds that cause the temperature to drop are also weakening, which usually should lead to the opposite result. This is also one of the reasons why the scientific community is confused.
Aside from the cause, the real concern about the cooling in the narrow equatorial corridor near the African coast is that it could have a "domino effect" on the global climate, for example in Europe. But it will also affect the hurricane season that begins in June and is expected to bring very strong hurricanes.
Meteorologist Victor Gonzalez explained that this anomaly is both good news and bad news. "Hurricanes get their energy from ocean heat. The colder Atlantic Ocean may reduce the energy available to hurricanes, thereby reducing their intensity. On the other hand, at our latitudes, this will be the 'best fuel' for big storms." Gonzalez warned: "We can't predict too early whether Spain, Portugal or France will be seriously affected, but what is certain is that autumn in Europe will be dominated by storms that last longer and are more intense."
As scientists continue to study the record to identify the mechanisms that caused this anomaly, it is also clear that temperatures elsewhere in the ocean will continue to rise, endangering the ecosystems there.
The Mediterranean is like a calm swimming pool. The temperature is so warm that the Copernicus Climate Change Service noted that the average surface temperature of the Mediterranean broke another record on August 15: the temperature reached 28.5 degrees Celsius, the highest since 1982.
The agency noted on its X account that according to data collected by its monitoring systems, the surface temperature of the Mediterranean Sea has been above 28 degrees Celsius since August 6, "the longest time it has exceeded this critical value."
As with sea surface temperatures, warmer-than-normal upper ocean temperatures are becoming increasingly common. In this regard, several United Nations climate reports confirm an average increase of 0.1 degrees Celsius per decade and estimate a global average sea level rise of 0.19 metres between 1901 and 2010.
From the end of July to August, southern Europe experienced a number of hot weather events, especially Spain, which recorded four heat waves with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees Celsius during this period. (Compiled by Wang Meng)
Atlantic waves in Les Ges-Cap-Ferrets, southwestern France (AFP)
