The sea off the Fiji Islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean has never been warmer than it is now in more than 600 years, according to a study published in the journal Science Advances.
The data are “further evidence of the unprecedented warming of the western Pacific,” said Johannes Gutenberg University (JGU) in Mainz, which was involved.
Honeycomb coral provides a glimpse into the past
The reef-building honeycomb coral (Diploastrea heliopora) made it possible to look into the climate past. It can grow very old and grows an average of three to six millimeters per year, according to JGU. The climate changes of the past centuries are stored in the skeleton of such corals.
Specifically, the researchers looked at a core of such a coral, approximately two meters long, specifically at the ratio of strontium to calcium. The age of the layer in question was determined using the so-called uranium-thorium dating method – this was precisely the contribution of the Institute of Geosciences at the University of Mainz.
2022 warmest year since 1370
Roughly speaking, the method looks at the extent to which the uranium isotopes decay radioactively and are converted into thorium, which allows conclusions to be drawn about the age. The analysis of coral data from 1370 to 1997, supplemented with measurements of the water temperature over 26 years, showed that the year 2022 was the warmest year in the Pacific Ocean since 1370.
The southwestern Pacific Ocean plays a central role in regulating global climate patterns, such as the El Niño-Southern Oscillation weather phenomenon, the report said. This is a coupled circulation system between the ocean and atmosphere in the tropical Pacific. Strong and moderate El Niño events contribute to warming and increase average surface temperatures around the world, experts say, and can influence high- and low-pressure systems, winds and precipitation.
Concerns about climate disasters
The coral project researchers report that, according to current climate simulations, developments over the course of the 21st century are likely to lead to further droughts or heavy rainfall, depending on the position in the Pacific Ocean, and thus – unless countermeasures are taken – to “adverse consequences for residents of the threatened Pacific Islands and their ecosystems”.
Source: Krone
I am an experienced and passionate journalist with a strong track record in news website reporting. I specialize in technology coverage, breaking stories on the latest developments and trends from around the world. Working for Today Times Live has given me the opportunity to write thought-provoking pieces that have caught the attention of many readers.
