Research shows Southern Ocean wind currents weakening

[jpak]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/02/18/2165601.htm?section=justin

A 15-year research project has revealed that changes in wind patterns are contributing to rising sea temperatures in the Southern Ocean.

<snip>

Research Co-ordinator Rosemary Morrow says global warming is causing the sea's surface to heat up, but changes in wind patterns are causing the temparature increases at the bottom of the ocean.

Dr Rosemary Morrow says wind currents which have a cooling effect on the ocean have weakened over the last decade.

"Over the 10, 15 year period we've seen that the winds were much stronger at the beginning, they're weaker at the end, and we see these very large scale patterns of warming which contribute to large scale patterns in sea level rise," she said.

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[donsu]

1. tick, tick, tick,

nt

[pscot]

2. tick-tick, tick-tick, tick-tick

n/t

[phantom power]

3. that sounds more favorable for tropical storms.

All other things being equal.

[jpak]

4. That water is still pretty damned cold south of 50 degrees latitude

and the storms they do have down there are not to be taken lightly - the last time I was down that way, we had a 55 knot gale with 40 foot seas - the bow spray went over the bridge (at least 75 feet from the water line).

They don't call them the Furious Fifties for nothing...

[phantom power]

5. that is closer to the pole than I thought.

[jpak]

6. Hobart Australia is at 42o S latitude and the Antarctic Polar Front is ~60o S latitude

The Polar Front is the sharp transition between sub-antarctic (~ 5 degrees C) and antarctic water (<0 degrees C) masses.

It's a pretty spectacular transition too. One minute you in open water with mild air temps and temperate sea birds, then *boom* you're into the sea ice, air and sea surface temps drop like a rock and the antarctic fauna (birds and mammals) suddenly appear.

Between Hobart and the northern Ross Sea is where sea surface temps have been warming, but they still have a long way to go before they can support tropical cyclones ~ 27o C (even though intense storms down that way often have "eyes")...