For years (and we mean many years), the ocean helped us mitigate the early effects of human emissions by absorbing greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide and heat, from the atmosphere. As a result, more than 90 percent of the warming that happened on Earth between 1971 and 2010 occurred in the ocean. A selfless act by Mother Nature, but it’s catching up to us.
Climate change, which describes long-term changes to temperature and typical weather, is accelerating at an alarming pace—and the impacts are hard to ignore. Let’s take a look at some changes to our ocean.
3 Ways Climate Change Affects Our Ocean
Rising sea levels
Sea levels are rising at the fastest rate in 3,000 years. From 2018 to 2019, the global sea level rose to 6.1 millimeters. Sure, a few millimeters doesn’t sound like a lot, until you hear that the average, since 1993, has been 3.2 millimeters per year. That means that last year we doubled the global average from the past twenty years! The same report shares that the U.S. East Coast’s average is actually three to four times the global average. The ocean is rising, and it’s rising fast.
The two major causes are thermal expansion (warm water expands), and melting glaciers and ice sheets. Why should we care? Rising sea levels increase the amount and severity of floods and shoreline erosion. It may also destroy wildlife habitats on the shoreline, interfere with coastal farming, and contaminate potable water sources.
Ocean acidification is a chemical imbalance that stems from large amounts of carbon dioxide. Put simply, it increases the concentration of hydrogen ions and reduces the amount of carbonate ions. Shellfish and other sea life rely on carbonate ions to grow their shells and thrive. But with fewer carbonate ions, shells become thin and brittle, growth slows down, and death rates increase. Since the Industrial Revolution, ocean acidity has increased by 30%. With large shellfish die-offs, the whole marine food chain is affected—not the best news for the multi-billion dollar fishing industry.
Extreme weather events
With more heat in the atmosphere and warmer ocean surface temperatures, the world is experiencing an increase in the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events. For example, research suggests that the number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes—characterized by higher wind speeds and more precipitation—is steadily increasing. To make matters worse, sea-level rise and a growing population along coastlines will exacerbate their impact. We’re predicting that coastal engineers and planners will be busy in the coming years.
Mitigating These Effects With Data
As demonstrated above, after years of emitting greenhouse gases, the effects of climate change are very evident. It’s time to collectively mitigate and reduce our carbon footprint.
We’re going to come out and just say it—we believe it starts with better data.
The current scale, pace, and practice of ocean scientific discovery and observation are not keeping up with the changes in ocean and human conditions. Current data is siloed and inaccessible—hindering a unified knowledge base for strategies and policy making.
Here are some ways that data needs to improve:
According to the Global Ocean Science Report (compiled by UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission) ocean research is currently led by a small number of industrialized countries. Why? Because they can afford investments in data technology. Many coastal nations are not involved in building this knowledge base simply because they can’t afford the tools. Research is expensive.
By providing real-time information in actionable forms, this technology is incredibly useful for driving innovation. In order to accelerate the co-creation of knowledge and strategies, these tools need to be accessible to developing countries as well. Affordability and accessibility is the driving force behind Sofar Ocean’s Spotter buoys, which you can read more about here.
Open data sharing:
A major stumbling block to universal data synthesis is ownership. Government agencies, research, and private companies are all key players in ocean data collection and management, keeping these insights locked away for their own specific purposes.
Data tagging, federated data networks, and data lakes should be combined to create a new era of open and automated ocean data access. Governments can lead the way by declassifying and sharing data that are relevant to ocean science and management. They can also incentivize companies and researchers to share data by making it a condition for access to public resources, such as funding for ocean research, permits for coastal development, or licenses for oil exploration or fishing.
Making Waves Requires Momentum
A molecule of CO2 emitted in India or China has the same effect on the climate system as a molecule emitted in the United States. No matter where we are, climate change affects us all the same. Transformative changes require a unified approach. And we believe that starts with data.
Kwa miaka mingi, bahari imetusaidia kupunguza athari za mapema za uzalishaji wa binadamu kwa kunyonya gesi za chafu, kama vile kaboni dioksidi na joto, kutoka angahewa. Kwa sababu hiyo, zaidi ya asilimia 90 ya ongezeko la joto duniani kati ya mwaka wa 1971 na 2010 lilitokea baharini. Hatua ya kujitolea ya Mama Asili, lakini inatufikia. Mabadiliko ya hali ya hewa, ambayo yanaelezea mabadiliko ya muda mrefu ya joto na hali ya hewa ya kawaida, inaongeza kasi kwa kasi ya kutisha - na athari ni ngumu kupuuza. Hebu tuangalie baadhi ya mabadiliko katika bahari yetu. Mabadiliko ya hali ya hewa yanaathiri bahari: Mabadiliko ya hali ya hewa yanaathiri bahari kwa kasi zaidi katika miaka 3000 Tangu mwaka 2018 hadi 2019, kiwango cha bahari duniani kiliongezeka kwa milimita 6.1. "Hata hivyo, ""millimeters chache"" haionekani kuwa mengi, mpaka ukisikia kwamba wastani, tangu 1993, imekuwa milimita 3.2 kwa mwaka." Hiyo inamaanisha kwamba mwaka jana tuliongeza mara mbili wastani wa ulimwengu kutoka miaka ishirini iliyopita! Ripoti hiyo hiyo inashiriki kwamba wastani wa Pwani ya Mashariki ya Marekani kwa kweli ni mara tatu hadi nne ya wastani wa kimataifa. Bahari inaongezeka, na inaongezeka haraka. Sababu kuu mbili ni upanuzi wa joto (maji ya joto huongezeka), na kuyeyuka kwa barafu na barafu. Kwa nini tuwe na wasiwasi? Kuongezeka kwa usawa wa bahari huongeza wingi na ukali wa mafuriko na mmomonyoko wa pwani. Pia inaweza kuharibu makao ya wanyama-pori kwenye pwani, kuingilia kilimo cha pwani, na kuchafua vyanzo vya maji ya kunywa. Asidi ya bahari ni usawa wa kemikali unaotokana na kiasi kikubwa cha kaboni dioksidi. Kwa ufupi, huongeza mkusanyiko wa ioni za hidrojeni na kupunguza kiasi cha ioni za kaboni. Samaki wa baharini na wanyama wengine wa baharini hutegemea ioni za kaboni ili kukuza magamba yao na kusitawi. Lakini kwa kuwa ioni za kaboni ni chache, magamba huwa nyembamba na dhaifu, ukuzi hupungua, na viwango vya vifo huongezeka. Tangu mapinduzi ya viwanda, asidi ya bahari imeongezeka kwa asilimia 30. Kwa sababu ya vifaru wakubwa kufa, mlolongo mzima wa chakula cha baharini unaathiriwa - si habari nzuri kwa sekta ya uvuvi ya mabilioni ya dola. Kwa sababu ya joto zaidi katika anga na joto la uso wa bahari, ulimwengu unakabiliwa na ongezeko la nguvu na mzunguko wa matukio ya hali ya hewa kali. Kwa mfano, utafiti unaonyesha kwamba idadi ya vimbunga vya Jamii ya 4 na 5 - vinavyotokana na kasi ya upepo na mvua zaidi - inaongezeka kwa kasi. Jambo baya zaidi ni kwamba, ongezeko la usawa wa bahari na ongezeko la idadi ya watu kwenye pwani zitafanya hali hiyo iwe mbaya zaidi. Tunatabiri kwamba wahandisi wa pwani na wapangaji watakuwa na shughuli nyingi katika miaka ijayo. Kuondoa athari hizi na data Kama ilivyoonyeshwa hapo juu, baada ya miaka ya kutolewa kwa gesi za chafu, athari za mabadiliko ya hali ya hewa ni dhahiri sana. Ni wakati wa kupunguza na kupunguza kwa pamoja alama yetu ya kaboni. Sisi ni kwenda kuja nje na tu kusema ni sisi kuamini huanza na data bora. Kiwango cha sasa, mwendo, na mazoezi ya uvumbuzi wa kisayansi wa bahari na uchunguzi hazifuatani na mabadiliko katika hali ya bahari na binadamu. Takwimu za sasa ni siloed na inaccessible <unk> kuzuia msingi wa maarifa umoja kwa ajili ya mikakati na utengenezaji wa sera. Kwa mujibu wa ripoti ya Global Ocean Science Report (iliyoandaliwa na Tume ya UNESCO ya Oceanografia ya Kati ya Serikali) utafiti wa bahari unaongozwa na idadi ndogo ya nchi zilizoendelea. Kwa nini? Kwa sababu wanaweza kumudu uwekezaji katika teknolojia ya data. Mataifa mengi ya pwani hayajihusishi na kujenga msingi huu wa maarifa kwa sababu tu hawawezi kumudu zana. Utafiti ni wa gharama kubwa. Kwa kutoa habari ya wakati halisi katika fomu zinazotumika, teknolojia hii ni muhimu sana kwa kuendesha uvumbuzi. Ili kuharakisha uundaji wa maarifa na mikakati, zana hizi zinahitaji kupatikana kwa nchi zinazoendelea pia. Uwezo wa bei nafuu na upatikanaji ni nguvu ya kuendesha nyuma ya Sofar Ocean's Spotter buoys, ambayo unaweza kusoma zaidi kuhusu hapa. Kugawana data wazi: Kizuizi kikuu kwa synthesis ya data ya ulimwengu ni umiliki. Mashirika ya serikali, utafiti, na makampuni binafsi ni wote wachezaji muhimu katika ukusanyaji wa data bahari na usimamizi, kuweka ufahamu huu kufungwa mbali kwa madhumuni yao wenyewe maalum. Kuunganisha data, mitandao ya data ya shirikisho, na maziwa ya data yanapaswa kuunganishwa ili kuunda enzi mpya ya upatikanaji wa data ya bahari ya wazi na ya kiotomatiki. Serikali zinaweza kuongoza njia kwa kufungua na kushiriki data ambazo zina umuhimu kwa sayansi ya bahari na usimamizi. Pia, inaweza kuhamasisha makampuni na watafiti kushiriki data kwa kuifanya kuwa sharti la upatikanaji wa rasilimali za umma, kama vile fedha kwa ajili ya utafiti wa bahari, vibali kwa ajili ya maendeleo ya pwani, au leseni kwa ajili ya upatikanaji wa mafuta au uvuvi. """Molekyuli ya CO2 iliyotolewa nchini India au China ina athari sawa kwa mfumo wa hali ya hewa kama molekuli iliyotolewa nchini Marekani." Haijalishi tuko wapi, mabadiliko ya hali ya hewa yanatuathiri wote kwa sawa. Mabadiliko ya mabadiliko yanahitaji mbinu ya umoja. Na tunaamini kwamba huanza na data.