Climate Letter #1649

An excellent review of how the world’s oceans are being affected by climate change (Rolling Stone – by Jeff Goodell).  Jeff is an outstanding environmental journalist, well-connected to leading climate scientists through frequent interviews.  This lengthy piece is full of information and right on target about the troubles we are facing, both known and unknown, in this vital segment of the planet.  The story also covers up-to-date knowledge of how the oceans affect the climate, in ways both active and passive.

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A new study adds to our understanding of probable future expansion of Earth’s drylands, and about their level of productivity, as a consequence of climate change (Washington State University).  “Drylands, which primarily include savannas, grasslands and shrublands, are important for supporting grazing and non-irrigated croplands around the world. They are also an important player in the global carbon cycle and make up 41% of Earth’s land surface and support 38% of its population…..Our results highlight the vulnerability of drylands to more frequent and severe climate extremes.”  The findings they describe, much like those in the story above, are deeply problematic.
–The study itself has open access and is clearly written.  It shows signs of diligent workmanship in the research undertaking.
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Researchers have created a new “slip law” governing the way glaciers slide toward the oceans (Iowa State University).  Laboratory experiments that have been going on since 2009 have provided useful information about how to predict rates of glacial movement over uneven terrain.  “Glacier ice is a highly viscous fluid that slips over a substrate…and friction at the bed provides the drag that holds the ice back…In the absence of friction, the weight of the ice would cause it to accelerate catastrophically like some landslides…..The resulting experimentally based slip law for glaciers moving over soft beds should make a difference in predictions of glacier movement and sea-level rise:….Ice sheet models using our new slip relationship…would tend to predict higher ice discharges to the ocean—and higher rates of sea-level rise—than slip laws currently being used in most ice sheet models.”
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Climate change is altering marine biology in an unexpected way that may reduce the ocean’s ability to sequester carbon (The Guardian).  “A first-ever winter and spring sampling of plankton in the western North Atlantic showed cell sizes were considerably smaller than scientists assumed, which means the carbon they absorb does not sink as deep or as fast, nor does it stay in the depths for as long.  This discovery is likely to force a negative revision of global climate calculations, say the authors of the Nasa-backed study, though it is unclear by how much”…..”We have found a misconception. It will definitely impact the model of carbon flows…It will require more than just a small tweak.”
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Scientists say that restoring the oceans to good health within thirty years is a possibility if decisive and urgent action is taken (CNN).  “A team of scientists from around the world found marine life to be “remarkably resilient” despite damage caused by human activity and interference…..ocean populations could be restored as soon as 2050, but warned that there is limited time to achieve this change…..The success of many marine conservation projects in recent years illustrates how we can make a real difference to life in our oceans if we apply the lessons learnt from them at scale and with urgency….We have a narrow window of opportunity to deliver a healthy ocean to our grandchildren’s generation, and we have the knowledge and tools to do so.”  (Hopefully they see answers to projections of further increases in ocean warming—and acidification—due to the effect of hard-to-remove greenhouse gases already in place and still growing.)
https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/02/world/ocean-recovery-marine-intl-scli-scn/index.html
Carl

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