Detong Choyin March 4, 2014. (Live Science) HERE WE GO...OCEANIC CURRENTS SLOWING DUE TO FRESHENING OF OCEAN WATERS -- ...A shift from briny to fresh in Antarcticas ocean waters in recent decades could explain the shutdown of the Southern Oceans coldest, deepest currents, a new study finds. The cold currents, called the Antarctic Bottom Water, are chilly, salty rivers that flow from the underwater edge of the Antarctic continent north toward the equator, keeping to the bottom of the seafloor. The currents carry oxygen, carbon and nutrients down to the deepest parts of the ocean. Previous studies have found this deep, dense water is disappearing, though researchers arent sure if the shrinkage is part of a long-term trend linked to global warming, or a natural cycle... ...What we suggest is, the change in salinity of the surface water makes them so light that even very strong cooling is not sufficient to make them dense enough to sink, de Lavergne told Live Science. Mixing them gets harder and harder.
Posted on: Tue, 04 Mar 2014 23:51:03 +0000
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