A reduction in the amount of oxygen dissolved in the oceans due to climate change is already discernible in some parts of the world and should be evident across large regions of the oceans between 2030 and 2040, according to a new study led by the National Centre for Atmospheric Research.
Scientists know that a warming climate can be expected to gradually sap the ocean of oxygen, leaving fish, crabs, squid, sea stars, and other marine life struggling to breathe. But until now it has been difficult to determine whether this anticipated oxygen drain is already having a noticeable impact.
It should go without saying that a process that threatens to remove the bottom rung of the food chain is unwelcome.