Climate Change
Climate Change Indicators in the United States
The oceans and the atmosphere interact constantly—both physically and chemically—exchanging heat, water, gases, and particles. This relationship influences the Earth's climate on regional and global scales. It also affects the state of the oceans.
Covering nearly 70 percent of the Earth's surface, the oceans store vast amounts of energy absorbed from the sun and move this energy around the globe through currents. As greenhouse gases trap more energy from the sun, the oceans will absorb more heat, resulting in an increase in sea surface temperatures, rising sea levels, and possible changes to ocean currents. These changes will very likely lead to alterations in climate patterns around the world. For example, warmer waters promote the development of more intense storms in the tropics, which can cause property damage or loss of life.
Even if greenhouse gas emissions are stabilized tomorrow, it will take many more years—decades or centuries—for the oceans to adjust to the climate changes that have already occurred.The oceans are also a key component of the Earth's carbon cycle. Over geological time, much of the world's carbon has come to reside in the oceans, either within plants and animals (living or dead) or dissolved as carbon dioxide. Although the oceans can help lessen climate change by storing a significant fraction of the carbon dioxide that human activities emit into the atmosphere, increasing levels of dissolved carbon dioxide can change the chemistry of seawater and harm certain organisms. These effects, in turn, could substantially alter the biodiversity and productivity of ocean ecosystems.
Changes in ocean systems generally occur over much longer time periods than in the atmosphere, where storms can form and dissipate in a single day. The interactions between ocean and atmosphere occur slowly, over many years—even decades. For this reason, even if greenhouse gas emissions are stabilized tomorrow, it will take many more years—decades or centuries—for the oceans to adjust to the climate changes that have already occurred.