Water moving faster in the Pacific

 

One factor affecting global climate change has been noted in the Pacific Ocean, an acceleration of the equatorial current system.

Acceleration of Pacific Ocean circulation is impacting global weather

Significant acceleration in the upper-ocean circulation of the equatorial Pacific Ocean over the past 30 years is impacting global weather patterns, according to a new study.

 

"The study is published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans.

Researchers used data collected between 1993–2022 from satellites, mooring buoys and ocean surface drifters.

They reanalysed wind data and satellite altitude measurements to create a high-resolution gridded map of ocean currents over time.

Among the findings is the roughly 20% acceleration of westward near-surface currents in the central equatorial Pacific."  (The blue swatch south of the Equator.)