Marine heatwaves and their implications
Jules Kajtar, University of Exeter, United Kingdom, Thomas L Froelicher, University of Bern, Climate and Environmental Physics, Bern, Switzerland, Roxy Mathew Koll, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Center for Climate Change Research, Pune, India, Matthew Collins, University of Exeter, College of Engineering, Mathematics and Physical Sciences, Exeter, United Kingdom, Kathleen Lynne McInnes, CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere, Climate Science Centre, Aspendale, VIC, Australia, So-Min Cheong, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, United States, Michael Sutherland, University of the West Indies, Geomatics Engineering & Land Management, St. Augustine, Trinidad and Tobago, Laurens Bower, Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht Centre for Materials and Coastal Research, Netherlands, Hélène Jacot Des Combes, The University of the South Pacific, Fiji, Iñigo J. Losada, Environmental Hydraulics Institute, Universidad de Cantabria, Santander, Spain, Beate M.W. Ratter, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany, Evelia Rivera-Arriga, Autonomous University of Campeche, CP, Mexico, R Dwi Susanto, Universidad de Manila, Philippines, Didier Swingedouw, University of Bordeaux 1, Pessac, France and Lourdes Tibig, Climate Change Commission, Philippines
Abstract:
Marine heatwaves (MHWs), periods of extremely high ocean temperatures, have negatively impacted marine organisms and ecosystems in all ocean basins over the last two decades, including critical foundation species such as corals, seagrasses and kelps (very high confidence). Under future global warming, MHWs will further increase in frequency, duration, spatial extent and intensity (very high confidence) pushing some marine organisms, fisheries and ecosystems beyond the limits of their resilience, with cascading impacts on economies and societies (high confidence). Limiting global warming would reduce the risk of impacts of MHWs, but critical thresholds for some ecosystems (e.g. kelp forests, coral reefs) will be reached at relatively low levels of future global warming (high confidence).
