From the University of London
Scientists discover link between climate change and ocean currents over 6 million years
Scientists have discovered a relationship between climate change and ocean currents over the past six million years after analysing an area of the Atlantic near the Strait of Gibraltar, according to research published today (Friday, 13 June) in the journal Science.
An expedition of scientists, jointly led by Dr Javier Hernandez-Molina, from the Department of Earth Sciences at Royal Holloway, University of London, examined core samples from the seabed off the coast of Spain and Portugal which provided proof of shifts of climate change over millions of years.
The team also discovered new evidence of a deep-earth tectonic pulse in the region, as well as thick layers of sand within mountains of mud in a vast sheet, spreading out nearly 100km into the Atlantic from the Gibraltar gateway. The quantity of sand is far more than was expected and has been caused by the strength, speed and long duration of bottom currents flowing through the Strait of Gibraltar from the Mediterranean.
“The sediments we examined show various shifts of climate change over millions of years”, Dr Hernandez-Molina said. “In addition, our findings could herald a significant shift in future targets for oil and gas exploration in deep-water settings. The thickness, extent and properties of these sands make them an ideal target in places where they are buried deep enough to allow for the trapping of hydrocarbons. The sand is especially clean and well sorted and therefore very porous and permeable.”
The expedition, carrying an international team of 35 scientists from 14 countries, recovered 5km of core samples from an area along the Gulf of Cadiz and west of Portugal.
The research found that a powerful cascade of Mediterranean water spilling into the Atlantic was scouring the rocky seafloor, carving deep-sea channels and building up mountains of mud. This is due to Mediterranean water being saltier than the Atlantic and therefore denser, causing it to plunge downwards.
Dr Hernandez-Molina added: “We set out to understand how the Strait of Gibraltar acted first as a barrier and then a gateway over the past six million years. The fascinating results we came back with have hugely increased our understanding of the Mediterranean Outflow Water (MOW) that flows through the Gibraltar gateway and have led to some key discoveries about the relationship between climatic shifts, deep-water circulation and plate tectonic events over a huge timescale.”
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Refreshingly , a Ship of “not at all” fools, doing worthwhile research. and – a good idea never to leave ocean research only to the USA administration’s NOAA..
Cmon. Bill Gray has been preaching this for years since I started following his ideas in the 1970s. His reward… funding cut. I love the way funded studies discover what others have known and talked about for close to a half century
I’ve looked for and asked several times for information on what all that warm salty water was up to. I could not find a lot of info. So 3 cheers from me. Now I need a copy of this report and links to all that will follow.
[Weepy Bill is up to more foolishness. I’ll submit a note later today on the Tips page.]
Wow you mean the oceans might play a huge role in how climate operates? I’m so not surprised.
“In addition, our findings could herald a significant shift in future targets for oil and gas exploration in deep-water settings”.
————
Future oil and gas exploration? That pursuit will be illegal soon if HRH obama and the warmunists get their way.
What, no AGW tag lines included? Must be real science in action.
OK. I’m really offended by that. Not because I think that the US Administration or NOAA aren’t fools, just that the infamous “Ship of Fools” were “commonwealth” folk – not Americans.
Now, if you really wish to know, you need to follow ‘vukcevic hypothesis’ evolution; the energy comes from the ocean currents continuously shaken by global tectonics:
wattsupwiththat.com/2013/10/09/a-link-….
“””The fascinating results we came back with have hugely increased our understanding of the Mediterranean Outflow Water (MOW) that flows through the Gibraltar gateway…”
That must mean inflow occurs at the Suez Canal?
How does the Mediterranean stay saltier?
What was the Suez Canal impact on Mediterranean?
Googled it didn’t find much.
“The sediments we examined show various shifts of climate change over millions of years”, Dr Hernandez-Molina said.
Huh? Change happens or it doesn’t, it would be between climate change and climate stability.
Is “Climate Change” now synonymous with “longterm temperature trends”?
i see Dr. Hernandez-Molina is a soft rock geologist. Does he really have the credentials to discuss climate change? I mean.. he’s not a “climate scientist”…
Gray.
http://typhoon.atmos.colostate.edu/Includes/Documents/Publications/gray2012.pdf
funny
And here a rock and roll songwriter figured it out 50 years ago! 😉
“examined samples from the seabed off the coast of Spain and Portugal which provided proof of shifts of climate change”. When examining corks from wine bottles from Spain and Portugal, I observed many sudden shifts of a horizontal plane.
What the hell is a shift of a climate change? A climate change?
“The quantity of sand is far more than was expected…”
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Who cares about expectations, give us data.
Well, at least they ensured their funding by including the words “climate change” in their study. 🙂
And thus another Crypt-Mosh dropping is left in the comments, as he dares us to sniff it, feel it, taste it…
I really hope someday he grows out of that.
Steven Mosher on June 12, 2014 at 1:50 pm
Gray.
Are you owning up as one of the apparatchiks who lynched him?
Funny.
Curious George says:
June 12, 2014 at 1:56 pm
What the hell is a shift of a climate change? A climate change?
====================
Climate change has become meaningless. Wait . . . climate change was always meaningless.
Might be nice to see some of those “discoveries” summarized if anyone has access.
“””””…..u.k.(us) says:
June 12, 2014 at 1:56 pm
“The quantity of sand is far more than was expected…”
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Who cares about expectations, give us data……”””””
That is exactly why you do statistics. To find out how surprised you are supposed to be when you find what the real answer is. So nothing to see here; just move along; so the guy is surprised. Wow !!
Steven Mosher,
I didn’t understand the “funny” comment. Dr Gray was saying pretty much the same thing a year ago. Is that what ‘funny’ means?
Steve Oregon:
The more salty water is at the bottom and flows out, the less salty water is at the surface and flows in. The less salty water on the surface becomes more salty due to evaporation in the “hot mediterranean climate”, the more dense saltier water sinks and flows back out at sea bed level.
There must be papers around on the internet about this – I certainly was taught about it in Second Mate’s class at Leith Nautical Coll. in the early 1960s.
And certainly there is a strong E going surface current most of the time in centre of the Str. of Gibraltar and eastward of it which can be beaten when W going by hugging the Spanish coast.
There isn’t any significant current in the Suez Canal.
Steve Oregon says:
June 12, 2014 at 1:44 pm
Actually, no. The less dense sea water flows in a the surface in the Straits of Gibraltar and the dense salty Med water flows out at the bottom.
Because it is shallow, it is warmer, and gets more evaporation. Not all of that comes down in the adjacent basins, so there’s a net loss of fresh water.
Good question. There are no locks on the canal, because the Med and the Red Sea are about at the same level. So I doubt that there’s much flow in such a long, narrow, tortuous channel. Too little pressure difference end to end to even begin to overcome the wall friction.
w.
Well with all the rivers flowing into it, it should not be a surprise that long term outflow is through Gibralter. Saltier, well evaporation of seawater will do that every time. Heck, I thought everyone knew this or I would have gone after a grant 50 years ago. Soon they’ll be extracting the day of the week and year of what went on in the world from cored muck on the sea floor.
Frankly, I don’t trust 97% of the current crop of climate researchers out there. Universities now have remedial language and math for illiterates entering Universities that shouldn’t be getting in there anyway.
” In 2009, 21.3 percent of the adult population above 18 years had attended college, but had no degree, 7.5 percent held an associate’s degree, 17.6 percent held a bachelor’s degree, and 10.3 percent held a graduate or professional degree.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Higher_education_in_the_United_States
S’Truth! 46.8% of the adult population has been to university in the US and 49% of the population has an IQ of less than 100 by definition. It would be interesting to see the breakdown by discipline. There are probably enormous faculties of Women’s Issues, Diversity Research, Sustainable Retrogression and Activist Guerrilla Tactics, Environ-mental Disorders….. Sciences without the word ‘science’ or ‘sciences’ attached to their names and math, not so much.