Researchers say Norwegian ocean waters warming to record high temperatures
Pastor Dale Morgan
Researchers say Norwegian ocean waters warming to record high temperatures*
28.03.2007
Winter ice cover in the Arctic Barents Sea in 2006 was the lowest ever
recorded, and waters all along the Norwegian coast were hitting record
high average temperatures, the national Institute of Marine Research
said Wednesday.
It said average water temperatures in the Barents Sea over the years
since 2000 have been the highest since records started in 1900.
"It has never been as warm in Norwegian ocean areas as it is now," said
the institute's report "Ocean Resources and Environment 2007." "The
warming is due both to warm weather and warm Atlantic currents, and the
cause is a combination of natural and manmade changes."
The report said a natural warming trend in the Barents Sea, the
Norwegian Sea and the North Sea over the past 30 years is expected to
start a cooling period until about 2030.
"Manmade climate change will change that, and with the greatest
likelihood contribute to the warmth records we now see," said the
report, released in the western Norway city of Bergen. However, it said
a natural cooling trend may dampen the impact of manmade global warming.
The researchers said the North Sea was 3.0-3.5 degrees Celsius (5.4-6.3
Fahrenheit) higher than average during the last quarter of 2006, the
highest level since measurements started in 1936. In the Norwegian Sea,
the warmest areas were about 1.25 degrees (2.25 F) above the long-term
averages. It said Russian observations in the Barents Sea in May showed
temperatures 1.3 degrees (2.34 F) higher than average.
It said coastal fish stocks, such as cod, herring and mackerel, were
generally in good condition, although southern fish stocks, such as
whiting, were moving north to warming waters.