
Open access
Date
2021-12-16Type
- Journal Article
Abstract
The ocean is warming, losing oxygen and being acidified, primarily as a result of
anthropogenic carbon emissions. With ocean warming, acidification and
deoxygenation projected to increase for decades, extreme events, such as marine
heatwaves, will intensify, occur more often, persist for longer periods of time and
extend over larger regions. Nevertheless, our understanding of oceanic extreme
events that are associated with warming, low oxygen concentrations or high acidity,
as well as their impacts on marine ecosystems, remains limited. Compound events—
that is, multiple extreme events that occur simultaneously or in close sequence—are
of particular concern, as their individual effects may interact synergistically. Here we
assess patterns and trends in open ocean extremes based on the existing literature as
well as global and regional model simulations. Furthermore, we discuss the potential
impacts of individual and compound extremes on marine organisms and ecosystems.
We propose a pathway to improve the understanding of extreme events and the
capacity of marine life to respond to them. The conditions exhibited by present
extreme events may be a harbinger of what may become normal in the future. As a
consequence, pursuing this research effort may also help us to better understand the
responses of marine organisms and ecosystems to future climate change. Show more
Permanent link
https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000521508Publication status
publishedExternal links
Journal / series
NatureVolume
Pages / Article No.
Publisher
SpringerOrganisational unit
03731 - Gruber, Nicolas / Gruber, Nicolas
Funding
175787 - X-EBUS: Extreme Ocean Weather Events and their Role for Ocean Biogeochemistry and Ecosystems in Eastern Boundary Upwelling Systems (SNF)
820989 - Our common future ocean – quantifying coupled cycles of carbon, oxygen, and nutrients for determining and achieving safe operating spaces with respect to tipping points (EC)
Related publications and datasets
Is supplemented by: https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-b-000501082
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