The Southern Ocean is crucial for global carbon sequestration and sea level rise, as it absorbs significant amounts of carbon dioxide and excess heat from greenhouse gases.

A recent study led by Earle Wilson highlights that global warming is accelerating ice sheet melting and increasing local precipitation, which in turn affects ocean temperatures.

Current climate models fail to accurately represent the effects of glacial meltwater on ocean circulation, which introduces considerable uncertainty into future sea level rise projections.

The mismatch between observed and simulated sea surface temperatures complicates climate impact preparations for scientists and governments.

Melting ice contributes freshwater to the Southern Ocean, creating a less salty and less dense upper layer that hinders the mixing of cooler surface waters with warmer depths.

Researchers discovered that concentrated freshwater near the Antarctic coast has a more significant impact on sea ice formation and surface temperatures than rainfall dispersed across the ocean.

The study found that increased meltwater and rainfall account for 60% of the discrepancies between predicted and actual ocean temperatures around Antarctica.

While global climate models have historically predicted warming in the Southern Ocean, actual observations indicate a cooling trend over the past four decades.

Recent warming events in the Southern Ocean may disrupt the long-term cooling trend, influencing expectations regarding near-term climate change impacts.

Utilizing simulations from the Southern Ocean Freshwater Input from Antarctica Initiative, the study quantifies the influence of meltwater on temperature discrepancies from 1990 to 2021.