Julia Whitty - Big Changes in Ocean Salinity Intensifying Water Cycle

May 2, 2012
Gary Null in Climate Change, Science, Water

A paper [1] in Science today finds rapidly changing ocean salinities as a result of a warming atmosphere have intensified the global water cycle (evaporation and precipitation) by an incredible 4 percent between 1950 and 2000. That's twice the rate predicted by models. 

These same models have long forecast that dry areas of Earth will become drier and wet areas wetter in a warming climate—an intensification of the water cycle driven mostly by the capacity of warmer air to hold and redistribute more moisture in the form of water vapor.

But the rate of intensification of the global water cycle is happening far faster than imagined: at about 8 percent per degree Celsius of ocean warming since 1950.

At this rate, the authors calculate:

• The global water cycle will intensify by a whopping 16 percent in a 2°C warmer world

   

• The global water cycle will intensify by a frightening 24 percent in a 3°C warmer world

Read More:

http://www.motherjones.com/blue-marble/2012/04/warming-climate-driving-huge-salinity-and-water-cycle-changes-ocean

Article originally appeared on The Gary Null Blog (http://www.garynullblog.com/).