"Missing" Global Heat May Hide in Deep Oceans

[Hissyspit]

Source: Reuters

"Missing" global heat may hide in deep oceans

Sun Sep 18, 2011 10:32pm IST

REUTERS - The mystery of Earth's missing heat may have been solved: it could lurk deep in oceans, temporarily masking the climate-warming effects of greenhouse gas emissions, researchers reported on Sunday.

- snip -

"This study suggests the missing energy has indeed been buried in the ocean," NCAR's Kevin Trenberth, a co-author of the study, said in a statement. "The heat has not disappeared and so it cannot be ignored. It must have consequences."

Trenberth and the other researchers ran five computer simulations of global temperatures, taking into account the interactions between the atmosphere, land, oceans and sea ice, and basing the simulations on projected human-generated greenhouse gas emissions.

These simulations all indicated global temperature would rise several degrees this century. But all of them also showed periods when temperatures would stabilize before rising. During these periods, the extra heat moved into deep ocean water due to changes in ocean circulation, the scientists said.

Read more: http://in.reuters.com/article/2011/09/18/idINIndia-59411020110918

[No Elephants]

1. It's only speculation, I know, but speculation is that increasing ocean temperatures may be

related to an increase in creatures like whales and dolphins beaching themselves and/or seeming to lose their way.

[Hoosier Daddy]

2. There's no missing heat in Evansville

68 degrees at 5:40 AM

[SkyDaddy7]

3. Scientist say the true sign of Climate Change...

Is the increased nighttime temps. Until the recent cold front we were in the high 70's low 80's when I get up at 4:30am.

[Maine-ah]

5. 42 degrees this morning in Maine.

[GreenPartyVoter]

6. Ayuh. Fall is heah! :^D

[pam4water]

4. I think it's reflected back in to space by the large amounts of fine particulate pollution circling

around in the upper atmosphere.

[mikekohr]

7. I believe it is being sucked into the cold, vast vacumn that is Michele Bachman's head

or being stored in that 55 gallon oil drum the Palins were snorting coke from.

[BeHereNow]

17. lol! Keyboard alert- n/t

bhn

[Uncle Joe]

10. I believe to some degree you're correct, when all the planes were grounded after 9/11, we had

increased temperature spikes.

So the most devastating effects of global warming have been masked by this jet pollution, but the heat trapping properties of carbon dioxide and methane are the stronger force as global temperatures have increased in spite of this offsetting reflective dynamic.

[Bandit]

11. So in your opinion smog or our carbon pollution is counteracting our CO2 output?

So should we encourage more smog producing actions?

[NickB79]

14. That's exactly one proposal to geo-engineer our way out of global warming

The sulfur compounds that older, dirty coal plants used to put out, the same ones responsible for acid rain, also have an ability to reflect sunlight back into space and help cool the planet. It isn't a coincidence that, as we've installed scrubbers on coal plants to remove sulfur, global temperatures have spiked. So, one geo-engineering solution proposed to slow global warming is to intentionally inject large amounts of sulfur into the upper atmosphere.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stratospheric_sulfate_aerosols_%28geoengineering%29

[Bandit]

15. Sounds like an idea similar to if you get a splinter in your finger go ahead and cut off the hand to

make the splinter go away...

[NickB79]

16. Yeah, most geoengineering ideas are desperation moves, IMO

A way to triage a severely wounded patient and just get them stabilized, even if the end results aren't pretty. Anything to add a few more years to this consumer-driven lifestyle we've become accustomed to, ya know?

[Celefin]

8. Just like the 'disappeared' Gulf oil. Not on TV? Doesn't exist. -nt-

...

[AngryAmish]

9. sneaky fucker

you think we wouldn't find you at the abysmal depths...

[Bearware]

12. I suspect this is a VERY VERY scary development

The problem with heat in the deep ocean is that is where the methane hydrates are. When the deep ocean hydrates thaw out we will have a runaway greenhouse condition where we won't be able to noticeably affect global warming even if we immediately cease using ALL hydrocarbons and other fuels that produce CO2.:scared:

[lovuian]

13. we are so screwed

So scary

[BeHereNow]

18. Yeah, and no body talks about it

The thawing and release of that particular hell is what really
scares me- even more than Dick Cheney and he is pretty damned scary.
BHN

[lonestarnot]

20. I saw that fucker taking out his spare parts on the TV box the other day.

:puke:

[BeHereNow]

21. LOL and I join you-

:puke: is right!

[Psephos]

19. MH crystals are stabilized by pressure, not temperature, below 300 meters.

Assuming that increasing surface ice melt increases ocean mass, those MH deposits, if anything, will be even more sequestered, due to increased pressure.

The deposits in shallower waters (such as on the continental shelves) are more at risk from temperature increases - but the model that Trenberth proposes here puts the heat in far deeper ocean layers.

The ocean does not mix its thermal or haline layers very well - it's actually quite stratified, due to density sorting, and the global circulation cells in place tend to keep it that way.

So it appears, if this model is accurate, that this deep thermal increase would not have much affect on MH sediments.

That's not to say that other, shallower-water effects couldn't or wouldn't.