A new IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere claims that we still have time to avert some of the worst effects of climate change. Although painting a dire picture, which reveals the pervasive effects of global warming, the Report also highlights the significant benefits of limiting global warming by emphasising how lower emission scenarios will have reduced impacts on the wellbeing of oceans and the cryosphere.
Hans von Storch and Silvio Gualdi Being trained as natural scientists, some climate scientists began in the 1990s their excursions into social sciences when it
Promoting ocean science policy and management for sustainable development is the core focus of the Ocean Decade. In the next few years, ocean stakeholders worldwide will gather behind a common framework that will ensure ocean science can fully support countries in creating improved conditions for the sustainable development of the ocean.
Extreme weather is becoming increasingly common. Most recently, a record breaking heatwave in Greenland has gone viral thanks to the image of sled dogs wading through water where there should be ice. However, relating single weather events to climate change is problematic and, although these instances can act as indicators of a trend and eye-openers for public opinion, it is important to distinguish between single weather events and climate change.
Climate change is drastically altering the weather patterns and ice conditions that enable emperor penguins, the icons of the Antarctic, to reproduce. The Halley Bay colony, the second largest in the world, in the Weddell Sea has failed to raise chicks for the last three years, leading to discussions on how to monitor climate change and the ability of animals to adapt in a changing world.
“Thwaites glacier is huge and contains vast amounts of ice above sea level that, if transported into the ocean, would affect global sea level significantly” researcher Dorotea Iovino on retreat and ice melt in West Antarctica. A NASA-led study has found that a giant, growing cavern two-thirds the area of Manhattan is contributing to the rapid melting of Antarctica’s Thwaites Glacier. Comment by Dorotea Iovino, CMCC scientist at the ODA – Ocean modeling and Data Assimilation Division
Continued warming of the Arctic atmosphere and ocean are driving broad change in the environmental system in predicted and, also, unexpected ways. New emerging threats are taking form and highlighting the level of uncertainty in the breadth of environmental change that is to come. A report tracking sea ice, snow cover, air temperature, ocean temperature, the Greenland ice sheet, vegetation and ecosystem changes during the 2018 calendar year.
The 2nd Edition of the Copernicus Marine Service Ocean State Report (OSR) provides information on changes and variations in the ocean over the past decades, with a focus on changes in the marine environment during the year 2016.
Despite the increasing number of policies to reduce disposable plastic items, studies show petrochemicals are becoming the largest drivers of future global demand for oil.
A new European Commission report shows that EU Member States have made considerable efforts to address pressures on the marine environment. Despite this, the measures are not yet sufficient to achieve good, healthy and productive seas by 2020.
The climate change-related increase in sea water temperature is making fish groups move, leading to the creation of new transboundary stocks. National and international bodies must take action now and cooperate on the implementation of new fisheries regulations and practices, to avoid potential future conflicts.
Since 1961 the annual global growth in fish consumption has been twice as high as population growth, demonstrating that the fisheries sector is crucial in meeting the goal of a world without hunger and malnutrition. Data and in-depth analyses on global fish production, consumption and marketing rates, together with some first attempts at quantifying the possible future scenarios regarding the linkages of fisheries and aquaculture both to climate change and to other challenges, such as pollution. The current state of these two key sectors worldwide up to 2018 in the new FAO report.
