The research found that the deep waters’ volume diminished by over 20 per cent and that the remaining deep waters below 2000 meters experienced a warming rate four times greater than the rest of the Earth’s oceans. One aspect is attributed to changes in large scale wind patterns between the Pacific and Southern Oceans that have weakened northerly winds along the Weddell Sea, which generate the intense freezing needed to create sea ice. Closer to the continent, the production of sea ice has been slowed by reduced winds from the Filchner-Ronne ice shelf in the Southern Weddell Sea. There, the wind force is no longer strong enough to push sea ice away from the shelf and create gaps where more ice can form. But these key observations from the Weddell Sea show that changes in the dark abyss can take place over just a few decades.”Comments, tips or story ideas?

Source: CBC News June 16, 2023 20:06 UTC