Research shows world's oceans were hottest ever in 2022, broke record for seventh year on the trot

A group of scientists have said that the world's oceans were the hottest ever recorded in 2022, exceeding the previous record in 2021. This is the seventh consecutive year that the record has been broken. The records, which started back in 1958, showed an inexorable rise in ocean temperature with an acceleration in warming after 1990, a report by the Guardian on Wednesday (January 11) said. The research, titled - Another Year of Record Heat for the Oceans - said that changes in the ocean heat content (OHC), salinity, and stratification provide critical indicators for changes in Earth’s energy and water cycles.

The research, publishedin Advances in Atmospheric Sciences on Wednesday,used temperature data collected by a range of instruments across oceans and combined separate analyses by teams from the United States and China to calculate the heat content of the top 2,000 metres.

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The research said that these (Earth's energy and water cycles) cycles have been "profoundly altered" because of the emission of greenhouse gases and other anthropogenic substances by human activities, driving pervasive changes in the planet's climate system.

In 2022, oceans were the hottest in the historical record. As per data, the 0–2000 m OHC in 2022 exceeded that of 2021 by 10.9 ± 8.3 ZJ (1 Zetta Joules = 1021 Joules); and according to NCEI/NOAA data, by 9.1 ± 8.7 ZJ.The salinity contrast index also reached its highest level on record last year.

Among seven regions, four basins - the North Pacific, North Atlantic, the Mediterranean Sea, and southern oceans - saw their highest OHC since the 1950s. The regional OHC and salinity changes in 2022 were dominated by a strong La Niña event.

"During a prolonged La Niña event, such as the one witnessed most recently, the tropics cool overall and emit less thermal radiation to space, thereby increasing Earth’s net energy imbalance and OHC," the research said. The La Niña condition 2022 was associated with a vertical heat redistribution - meaning more heat in the subsurface and less heat in the near-surface.

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Professor John Abraham from the University of St Thomas in Minnesota, who was a part of the research team told the Guardian, "If you want to measure global warming, you want to measure where the warming goes, and over 90% goes into the oceans." Professor Abraham said that measuring oceans is the most accurate way to determine how out of balance Earth is.

Another member of the research team, Professor Michael Mann from the University of Pennsylvania, told the publication that warmer oceans meant there was more potential for bigger precipitation events. He added that the analysis showed an ever-deeper layer of warm water on the ocean surface.

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