30
OCEAN CIRCULATION AND
THERMAL EXPANSION
Melting and warming will have consequences on ocean cir-
culation, as ocean currents are driven by the interactions
between water masses though balance in temperature and
salinity, in other words, their density. Additionally melting of
inland glaciers and continental ice sheets on Greenland and
Antarctica, and the thermal expansion of ocean waters are
causing sea level rise.
Source: IPCC, 2007.
Sea level anomalies
(Metres)
0 0.05 0.10 0.15 0.20 0.25 and more
-0.05
-0.10
-0.15
-0.20
-0.25
INCREASED FREQUENCY AND
SEVERITY OF STORM EVENTS
Higher water temperatures lead to increased evaporation,
making more energy available for the atmosphere, which
boosts the destructive force of extreme weather events like
hurricanes, typhoons etc.
3
2
Figure 10. Sea level anomalies
(see text).
