Oceans & Ice - Haggard Earth

Details: Written by: Glenn and Rick; Category: Water & Ice; Hits: 8

The Ocean Can Play a Much Larger Role in Fighting Climate Change. WRI Katie Wood and Oliver Ashford May 22, 2026Seven strategies can harness the world’s largest ecosystem to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Just 1% of global development funding goes to ocean-based climate solutions. Yet research shows that these very solutions — from offshore wind to restored mangroves — could deliver one-third of the emissions reductions needed by 2050 to limit warming to 1.5 degrees C (2.7 degrees F). Every $1 invested in key ocean actions can return at least $5 in global benefits over the next 30 years. We break down seven ocean-based strategies that cut emissions, create jobs, protect coastlines and improve food security — and make the case for why the ocean must be at the heart of climate negotiations.The effects of climate change are becoming increasingly apparent.

The last 11 years have been the hottest on record, negatively affecting health, economies and ecosystems. But one of the most promising areas for climate action has been largely overlooked and underinvested: the ocean. Research commissioned by the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy found that ocean-based climate solutions can deliver over a third of the annual emissions cuts needed in 2050 to limit temperature rise to 1.5 degrees C (2.7 degrees F), a globally agreed target to avert the worst outcomes from climate change. These solutions, such as offshore renewables and restoring mangroves and other “blue carbon” ecosystems, are ready to implement and economically viable today. Data shows that investing $1 in key ocean actions can yield at least $5 in global benefits, often more, over the next 30 years. They can also produce multiple co-benefits including job creation, habitat protection, food security and others. But while investments in a sustainable ocean economy are profitable, finance for these solutions has been largely lacking. For example, less than 1% of global development funding goes to the ocean. Meanwhile, analysis shows that while 90% of coastal and island nations’ new climate plans (known as “nationally determined contributions,” or NDCs) include at least one ocean action, they’re largely missing solutions with the most potential to reduce emissions and generate new economic opportunities.

Here are seven key opportunities for ocean-based climate action that can deliver substantial emissions cuts alongside social, economic and environmental benefits for coastal communities:

1) Expanding Ocean-based Renewable Energy Ocean-based renewable energy is a major area of opportunity, with ready-to-implement solutions including offshore wind as well as floating solar and tidal power. Ramping up offshore renewables could slash greenhouse gas emissions by up to 3.60 gigatonnes per year in 2050 — more than the E.U.’s emissions in 2021. Increasing deployment of renewables will also be critical to meeting global energy demand as the world works to increase electricity generation while phasing out coal and other fossil fuels. This potential is more than theoretical. Investment in ocean-based renewables is already increasing. Global pledges in offshore wind now bring targeted deployment to up to 2,000 GW, enough to power approximately 1.5 billion homes annually by 2050. Certain countries are leading by example. Norway, for instance, is home to the world’s largest fully operational floating offshore wind park, Hywind Tampen. It has also allocated areas for 30 GW of offshore wind power production by 2040 and announced a competition for offshore wind production in two areas on the Norwegian continental shelf: Sørlige Nordsjø II (3,000 MW) and Utsira Nord (1,500 MW). China currently leads the world in offshore wind capacity, with over half of all operational turbines. To accelerate this transition at a global scale, countries must drastically increase their targets to augment the share of renewable power in the energy mix. They must also provide a stable and clear economic and regulatory framework to stimulate investments in supporting infrastructure for ocean-based energy. This includes reducing barriers in scaling up offshore wind turbines (both fixed and floating), as well as investing in new, innovative ocean-based energy sources, such as floating solar photovoltaics, wave power and tidal power. These technologies can help meet the world’s energy needs while minimizing harm to marine life.

2) Reducing Emissions from Ships.......The international shipping industry carries about 80% of the world’s trade between nations; if counted as a country, it would be among the world’s 10 largest emitters. While some progress has been made to decarbonize ocean-based transport over the last decade — primarily through energy efficiency measures such as redesigning and refurbishing ships to reduce fuel use — reducing the sector’s impact will require much more investment in both existing and emerging low-carbon shipping solutions.......read on, there's five more https://www.wri.org/insights/ocean-based-climate-change-solutions?apcid=0065aea2164a6d4199768d01&utm_campaign=wridigest&utm_medium=email&utm_source=wridigest-2026-06-10

Details: Written by: Glenn and Rick; Category: Water & Ice; Hits: 17

OCEANS- How heat moves.....The ocean is the largest solar energy collector on Earth. Not only does water cover more than 70 percent of our planet’s surface, it can also absorb large amounts of heat without a large increase in temperature. This tremendous ability to store and release heat over long periods of time gives the ocean a central role in stabilizing Earth’s climate system. The main source of ocean heat is sunlight. Additionally, clouds, water vapor, and greenhouse gases emit heat that they have absorbed, and some of that heat energy enters the ocean. Waves, tides, and currents constantly mix the ocean, moving heat from warmer to cooler latitudes and to deeper levels.

Heat absorbed by the ocean is moved from one place to another, but it doesn’t disappear. The heat energy eventually re-enters the rest of the Earth system by melting ice shelves, evaporating water, or directly reheating the atmosphere. Thus, heat energy in the ocean can warm the planet for decades after it was absorbed. If the ocean absorbs more heat than it releases over a given time span, its heat content increases. Knowing how much heat energy the ocean absorbs and releases is essential for understanding and modeling global climate.

Measuring ocean heat...... Historically, taking the ocean’s temperature required ships to dangle sensors or sample collectors into the water. This time-consuming method could only provide temperatures for a small part of the planet’s vast ocean. To get global coverage, scientists turned to satellites that measure the height of the ocean’s surface. As water warms, it expands, so estimates for ocean temperature can be deduced from sea surface heights.

To get a more complete picture of ocean heat content at different depths, scientists and engineers also use a range of in situ temperature-sensing instruments. Among these are a fleet of more than 3,000 robotic “floats” that measure ocean temperature around the world. Known as Argo floats, the sensors drift through the ocean at different depths. Every 10 days or so, according to their programmed instructions, they rise through the water, recording temperature (and salinity) as they ascend. When a float reaches the surface, it sends its location and other information to scientists via satellite, and then descends again. Scientists constantly compare data from satellites, floats, and probes to verify that the values they produce make sense. They process the range of measurements to calculate an estimate for global average ocean heat content every three months. Converting the temperatures to joules (a standard unit of energy) allows them to compare heat in the ocean to heat in other parts of Earth’s climate system.

Change over time.......More than 90 percent of the warming that has happened on Earth over the past 50 years has occurred in the ocean. Recent studies estimate that warming of the upper oceans accounts for about 63 percent of the total increase in the amount of stored heat in the climate system from 1971 to 2010, and warming from 700 meters down to the ocean floor adds about another 30 percent. Averaged over Earth's surface, the 1993–2024 heat-gain rates were 0.39±0.06 to 0.46±0.07 Watts per square meter for depths from 0–700 meters (down to 0.4 miles), depending on which research group's analysis you consult. Meanwhile, heat gain rates were 0.17±0.03 to 0.24±0.04 Watts per square meter for depths of 700–2,000 meters (0.4–1.2 miles). For depths between 2000–6000 meters (1.2–3.7 miles), the estimated increase was 0.070±0.016 Watts per square meter for the period from January 1988 to October 2014. Adding up the rates of all layers, the full-depth ocean heat gain rate ranges from 0.66 to 0.74 Watts per square meter applied to Earth’s entire surface. Averaged over Earth's surface, the 1993–2024 heat-gain rates were 0.39±0.06 to 0.46±0.07 Watts per square meter for depths from 0–700 meters (down to 0.4 miles), depending on which research group's analysis you consult. Meanwhile, heat gain rates were 0.17±0.03 to 0.24±0.04 Watts per square meter for depths of 700–2,000 meters (0.4–1.2 miles).

For depths between 2000–6000 meters (1.2–3.7 miles), the estimated increase was 0.070±0.016 Watts per square meter for the period from January 1988 to October 2014. Adding up the rates of all layers, the full-depth ocean heat gain rate ranges from 0.66 to 0.74 Watts per square meter applied to Earth’s entire surface. (The latest Earth system model simulations, however, find that at present levels of warming, this release of heat may be mostly balanced by the cooling influence provided by the natural carbon cycle, which will begin incrementally reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide levels right away.......read on https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-ocean-heat-content

Details: Written by: Glenn and Rick; Category: Water & Ice; Hits: 21

Climate Change: Ocean Heat Content Rebecca Lindsey AND LuAnn Dahlman June 26, 2025

How heat moves.....The ocean is the largest solar energy collector on Earth. Not only does water cover more than 70 percent of our planet’s surface, it can also absorb large amounts of heat without a large increase in temperature. This tremendous ability to store and release heat over long periods of time gives the ocean a central role in stabilizing Earth’s climate system. The main source of ocean heat is sunlight. Additionally, clouds, water vapor, and greenhouse gases emit heat that they have absorbed, and some of that heat energy enters the ocean. Waves, tides, and currents constantly mix the ocean, moving heat from warmer to cooler latitudes and to deeper levels.

Heat absorbed by the ocean is moved from one place to another, but it doesn’t disappear. The heat energy eventually re-enters the rest of the Earth system by melting ice shelves, evaporating water, or directly reheating the atmosphere. Thus, heat energy in the ocean can warm the planet for decades after it was absorbed. If the ocean absorbs more heat than it releases over a given time span, its heat content increases. Knowing how much heat energy the ocean absorbs and releases is essential for understanding and modeling global climate.

Measuring ocean heat...... Historically, taking the ocean’s temperature required ships to dangle sensors or sample collectors into the water. This time-consuming method could only provide temperatures for a small part of the planet’s vast ocean. To get global coverage, scientists turned to satellites that measure the height of the ocean’s surface. As water warms, it expands, so estimates for ocean temperature can be deduced from sea surface heights.

To get a more complete picture of ocean heat content at different depths, scientists and engineers also use a range of in situ temperature-sensing instruments. Among these are a fleet of more than 3,000 robotic “floats” that measure ocean temperature around the world. Known as Argo floats, the sensors drift through the ocean at different depths. Every 10 days or so, according to their programmed instructions, they rise through the water, recording temperature (and salinity) as they ascend. When a float reaches the surface, it sends its location and other information to scientists via satellite, and then descends again. Scientists constantly compare data from satellites, floats, and probes to verify that the values they produce make sense. They process the range of measurements to calculate an estimate for global average ocean heat content every three months. Converting the temperatures to joules (a standard unit of energy) allows them to compare heat in the ocean to heat in other parts of Earth’s climate system.

Change over time.......More than 90 percent of the warming that has happened on Earth over the past 50 years has occurred in the ocean. Recent studies estimate that warming of the upper oceans accounts for about 63 percent of the total increase in the amount of stored heat in the climate system from 1971 to 2010, and warming from 700 meters down to the ocean floor adds about another 30 percent. Averaged over Earth's surface, the 1993–2024 heat-gain rates were 0.39±0.06 to 0.46±0.07 Watts per square meter for depths from 0–700 meters (down to 0.4 miles), depending on which research group's analysis you consult. Meanwhile, heat gain rates were 0.17±0.03 to 0.24±0.04 Watts per square meter for depths of 700–2,000 meters (0.4–1.2 miles). For depths between 2000–6000 meters (1.2–3.7 miles), the estimated increase was 0.070±0.016 Watts per square meter for the period from January 1988 to October 2014. Adding up the rates of all layers, the full-depth ocean heat gain rate ranges from 0.66 to 0.74 Watts per square meter applied to Earth’s entire surface. Averaged over Earth's surface, the 1993–2024 heat-gain rates were 0.39±0.06 to 0.46±0.07 Watts per square meter for depths from 0–700 meters (down to 0.4 miles), depending on which research group's analysis you consult. Meanwhile, heat gain rates were 0.17±0.03 to 0.24±0.04 Watts per square meter for depths of 700–2,000 meters (0.4–1.2 miles).

For depths between 2000–6000 meters (1.2–3.7 miles), the estimated increase was 0.070±0.016 Watts per square meter for the period from January 1988 to October 2014. Adding up the rates of all layers, the full-depth ocean heat gain rate ranges from 0.66 to 0.74 Watts per square meter applied to Earth’s entire surface. (The latest Earth system model simulations, however, find that at present levels of warming, this release of heat may be mostly balanced by the cooling influence provided by the natural carbon cycle, which will begin incrementally reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide levels right away.......read on https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-ocean-heat-content

Details: Written by: Glenn and Rick; Category: Water & Ice; Hits: 42

Climate Change: Ocean Heat Content Rebecca Lindsey AND LuAnn Dahlman June 26, 2025

How heat moves.....The ocean is the largest solar energy collector on Earth. Not only does water cover more than 70 percent of our planet’s surface, it can also absorb large amounts of heat without a large increase in temperature. This tremendous ability to store and release heat over long periods of time gives the ocean a central role in stabilizing Earth’s climate system. The main source of ocean heat is sunlight. Additionally, clouds, water vapor, and greenhouse gases emit heat that they have absorbed, and some of that heat energy enters the ocean. Waves, tides, and currents constantly mix the ocean, moving heat from warmer to cooler latitudes and to deeper levels.Heat absorbed by the ocean is moved from one place to another, but it doesn’t disappear. The heat energy eventually re-enters the rest of the Earth system by melting ice shelves, evaporating water, or directly reheating the atmosphere. Thus, heat energy in the ocean can warm the planet for decades after it was absorbed. If the ocean absorbs more heat than it releases over a given time span, its heat content increases. Knowing how much heat energy the ocean absorbs and releases is essential for understanding and modeling global climate.

Measuring ocean heat...... Historically, taking the ocean’s temperature required ships to dangle sensors or sample collectors into the water. This time-consuming method could only provide temperatures for a small part of the planet’s vast ocean. To get global coverage, scientists turned to satellites that measure the height of the ocean’s surface. As water warms, it expands, so estimates for ocean temperature can be deduced from sea surface heights.To get a more complete picture of ocean heat content at different depths, scientists and engineers also use a range of in situ temperature-sensing instruments. Among these are a fleet of more than 3,000 robotic “floats” that measure ocean temperature around the world. Known as Argo floats, the sensors drift through the ocean at different depths. Every 10 days or so, according to their programmed instructions, they rise through the water, recording temperature (and salinity) as they ascend. When a float reaches the surface, it sends its location and other information to scientists via satellite, and then descends again. Scientists constantly compare data from satellites, floats, and probes to verify that the values they produce make sense. They process the range of measurements to calculate an estimate for global average ocean heat content every three months. Converting the temperatures to joules (a standard unit of energy) allows them to compare heat in the ocean to heat in other parts of Earth’s climate system.

Change over time.......More than 90 percent of the warming that has happened on Earth over the past 50 years has occurred in the ocean. Recent studies estimate that warming of the upper oceans accounts for about 63 percent of the total increase in the amount of stored heat in the climate system from 1971 to 2010, and warming from 700 meters down to the ocean floor adds about another 30 percent. Averaged over Earth's surface, the 1993–2024 heat-gain rates were 0.39±0.06 to 0.46±0.07 Watts per square meter for depths from 0–700 meters (down to 0.4 miles), depending on which research group's analysis you consult. Meanwhile, heat gain rates were 0.17±0.03 to 0.24±0.04 Watts per square meter for depths of 700–2,000 meters (0.4–1.2 miles). For depths between 2000–6000 meters (1.2–3.7 miles), the estimated increase was 0.070±0.016 Watts per square meter for the period from January 1988 to October 2014. Adding up the rates of all layers, the full-depth ocean heat gain rate ranges from 0.66 to 0.74 Watts per square meter applied to Earth’s entire surface. Averaged over Earth's surface, the 1993–2024 heat-gain rates were 0.39±0.06 to 0.46±0.07 Watts per square meter for depths from 0–700 meters (down to 0.4 miles), depending on which research group's analysis you consult. Meanwhile, heat gain rates were 0.17±0.03 to 0.24±0.04 Watts per square meter for depths of 700–2,000 meters (0.4–1.2 miles).

For depths between 2000–6000 meters (1.2–3.7 miles), the estimated increase was 0.070±0.016 Watts per square meter for the period from January 1988 to October 2014. Adding up the rates of all layers, the full-depth ocean heat gain rate ranges from 0.66 to 0.74 Watts per square meter applied to Earth’s entire surface. (The latest Earth system model simulations, however, find that at present levels of warming, this release of heat may be mostly balanced by the cooling influence provided by the natural carbon cycle, which will begin incrementally reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide levels right away.......read onhttps://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-ocean-heat-content

Details: Written by: Glenn and Rick; Category: Water & Ice; Hits: 55

Ocean Acidification: 7th Planetary Boundary Now Breached, Scientists Warn. Earth.Org Jessica Antonisse Global CommonsOct 13th 2025 We have now crossed seven out of nine planetary boundaries: climate change, biosphere integrity, novel entities, land system change, freshwater use, biogeochemical flow and, most recently, ocean acidification. Last month, humanity crossed another planetary boundary: ocean acidification. A new report from the Planetary Boundaries Science Lab at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) revealed that we have crossed a seventh planetary boundary, out of the nine that have been identified as critical for our current Earth System. The Earth System as we know it has been relatively stable for 11,700 years – the duration of the Holocene epoch, the current geological period of Earth’s history. This is the only state of the Earth that we know for certain can support human societies as we have designed them.

But human activities, such as fossil fuel burning, deforestation and intensive agriculture, have affected the Earth System to such an extent that we have irrevocably changed it. The most known example is climate change, but we have also impacted land systems, biodiversity, and the ocean, among other factors. The nine planetary boundaries were first proposed by a group of 28 scientists led by Johan Rockström and Will Steffen. They constitute a safe operating space for human beings. Crossing them translates into severe harm to human wellbeing and the planet as a whole. If we continue down a path leading us further away from the Holocene, we are very likely heading towards a very different state of the Earth System.

Already, researchers state we are likely living through the sixth mass extinction, for the first time driven by human impacts. In the past 50 years, wildlife populations have fallen by an estimated 73%.........read on https://earth.org/ocean-acidification-7th-planetary-boundary-now-breached-scientists-warn/

The Ocean Can Play a Much Larger Role in Fighting Climate Change.

OCEANS- How heat moves.....The Ocean is the Largest Solar Energy Collector on Earth.

Climate Change: Ocean Heat Content- The Ocean is the Largest Solar Energy Collector on Earth

Climate Change: Ocean Heat Content

Ocean Acidification: 7th Planetary Boundary Now Breached, Scientists Warn.

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