Oceans
Just as warm air rises, so does warm water. But warm water is already at the top of the ocean (usually). This inhibits water's vertical mixing. But saltier water, being denser, sinks. This promotes vertical mixing. So can winds. The balance among them is an empirical matter.
From 1961 to 1993, the atmosphere warmed ~50 times as fast as the ocean. From 1993 to 2004, it warmed only 25 times as fast. (See the bar graph, 2nd below. Oceans weigh more than 250 times as much as the atmosphere. Moreover, water has ~4 x the heat capacity of air, gram for gram.) So oceans hold 1,000 times as much heat as air.
Warming in the air at the land surface is terribly sensitive to what % of Earth's net heat absorbed goes into the ocean.
Below and also on Overviews page, 1961-2003 is in blue, 1993-2003 in magenta. More than half the 42-year change was in the then-most recent 10 years.
Ocean heat content at the sea surface is especially high, compared to "normal", in the tropical Atlantic.
2023-24 Articles
The Mother of All Climate Feedbacks? – Ocean Heating 0524
More Frequent Ocean Heat Waves Trigger Mass Die-Offs of Sea Life 0524
Ocean Heat Has Shattered Records for More Than a Year. What’s Happening? 0424
Scientists Fear Planetary Shift, as Record Ocean Heat Enters 2nd Year 0324
Winter Heat Waves Are Now a Thing. How to Make Sense of Them. 0224
Record Ocean Temperatures Should Really Scare You 0224
‘Astounding’ Ocean Temperatures in 2023 Intensified Extreme Weather 0124
The Push to Identify Ocean Heat Waves Before They Happen 0923
Global Ocean Temperatures Soared to a Record High This Week 0823
Miami’s Atlantic Ocean Surface Temperatures Hit 90°, Fueling Weather Disasters 0723
Deep-Sea Researchers Probe Mystery of Record Ocean Heat 0723
Florida Ocean Records ‘Unprecedented’ Temperatures, Similar to a Hot Tub 0723
Record Hot Oceans Are Driving Weather Disasters around the World 0723
How Hot Is the Sea Off Florida Right Now? Think 90s Fahrenheit. 0723 - 98°F just off the southwest coast of the Everglades, per July 15 report
Ocean Heat around Florida is Unprecedented. Coral Bleaching Abounds. 0723
Florida Ocean Temperatures at ‘Downright Shocking’ Levels 0723
Record Temperatures in Warming Oceans Causes Chaotic Weather Patterns 0723
‘Beyond Extreme’ North Atlantic Heat Wave Is Worst on Record, since 1850 - 0623
As North Atlantic Sizzles, the Pacific Is Now Heating up Too, Thanks to El Niño 0623
The World’s Oceans Shattered Heat Records in April and May 0623
North Atlantic Temperature Anomaly Sparks Concern among Climate Scientists 0623
Marine Heat Waves Can Happen Even at the Bottom of the Ocean 0323
Earth’s Oceans Are Showing Early and Surprising Record Warming 0323
Marine Heat Waves Are Sweeping the Seafloor around North America 0323
Arctic Climate Modeling Too Conservative, Says New Research 0323
Gulf of Maine Has 2nd-Hottest Year, after 2021, Getting to ‘Edge of Habitability’ 0223
Why Our Oceans Being the Warmest in Recorded History Is So Concerning 0823 -
Marine life struggles with heat, its resulting oxygen loss, and acidification. Coral is especially hard hit. The heat also, via the warming-melting effects on Greenland and Antarctic ice, slows down Atlantic Ocean circulation, especially the AMOC and Gulf Stream. They may collapse around mid-century ± 30 years, slowly and possibly as soon as 2025. The warming also melts sea ice, a major feedback that further accelerates global warming.
2022 Articles and earlier
Click to show 45 articles
Oceans Are Warming Faster than Ever. Here’s What Could Come Next. 1022
Ocean Warming Rates to Quadruple by 2090 if Climate Change Not Mitigated 1022
The Mediterranean Sea Is So Hot, It’s Forming Carbonate Crystals 1022
Marine Heat Waves Are on the Rise. What Are These Blobs of Hot Water? 0922
Extreme Heat in Europe Led to “Brutal” Rise in Sea Temperatures 0622
Lower-Level Ozone Is Responsible for Warming the Antarctic Ocean 0422
Oceans Are Warming Rapidly, New Study Confirms 0617
Earth's Oceans Are Warming 13% Faster than Thought, and Accelerating 0317
This Is How You Create a Record-Breaking Hurricane 1016
The Blob - How Marine Heat Waves Are Causing Unprecedented Climate Chaos 0816
In Warming Oceans, Stronger Currents Releasing Heat in Bigger Storms 0716
The Biggest Body of Warm Water on Earth Is Getting Even Bigger 0716
Do Pacific Waters Give Early Warning of East Coast Heat Waves? 0316
Scientists Are Floored by What’s Happening in the Arctic Right Now 0216
Unusually Warm Arctic Winter Yields Record Low Ice Extent for January 0216
Ocean Warming is Making Floods Worse 0116
Warmer Indian Ocean Could Be 'Ecological Desert', Scientists Warn 0116
The Oceans Are Heating Up Faster than We Thought. Why That Matters. 0116
Fresh Look at Ocean Side of Climate Shows ‘Unabated Planetary Warming’ 0215
Ocean Warming Understimated - 3 Perspectives 1014
Deep Oceans May Be Storing Heat 1113
More Global Warming Hiding in the Oceans? 0513
Why Earth’s Surface Warming Slowed Recently - Heat Went to Deep Ocean 0313
Levitus et al. Find Global Warming Continues to Heat the Oceans 0412
Deep Oceans Are Masking Surface Warming 0911
Multi-Decade Oscillation Goes Cool 0110
World Oceans Hottest On Record 0809
World Ocean Temperature Record 0709
Pacific Ocean Becomes a Cauldron 1115
Collapse of New England’s Iconic Cod Tied to Climate Change 1015
Warming Oceans May Threaten Krill, Cornerstone of the Antarctic Ecosystem 1015
Heat Rising from the Depths of the Arctic ‘Could Accelerate Ice Melt' 0915
A Warmer North Pacific Is Staying Warmer, With Dramatic Impact on Marine Life 0915
Global Warming Is Reversing 1,800 Years of Natural Ocean Cooling 0815
Surprising Reason for Faster Arctic Meltdown 0715
Warming Indian Ocean Weakens India’s Monsoon 0615
Heat is Piling Up in the Depths of the Indian Ocean 0515
Going with the Flow - Scientists Probe Changes in the East Australian Current 0515
Huge Blob of Warm Pacific Water Threatens US West Coast Ecosystems, May Intensify Drought 0415
Surprising Reason Why Arctic Warming Could Be Worse than We Thought 0415
Pacific Winds Tied to Warming Slowdown, Dry West 0415
More Global Warming Hiding in the Oceans? 0513
Why Earth’s Surface Warming Slowed Recently - Heat Went to Deep Ocean 0313
Our Oceans Are Hotter than Ever, so Scientists Worry for Our Future 0222
Extreme Heat in Oceans ‘Passed Point of No Return’ in 2014 - 0222 - Extreme temperatures - occurring just 2% of the time a century ago - have occurred at least 50% of the time across the global ocean since 2014. 90% in hotspots.
Hottest Ocean Temperatures in History Recorded Last Year, for 6th Year in a Row 0122
Warming Oceans - Levitus 0105 - PDF - Establishes that oceans store roughly 43% of Earth's energy gain, as heat.
Section Map: Heat