The Good News: the Atmosphere is not warming as fast.
The Bad News: the Oceans are warming up in its place.
IPCC climate report: humans 'dominant cause' of warming
by Matt McGrath Environment correspondent, BBC News, Stockholm -- 27 Sept 2013
[...]
"Our assessment of the science finds that the atmosphere and ocean have warmed, the amount of snow and ice has diminished, the global mean sea level has risen and that concentrations of greenhouse gases have increased," said Qin Dahe, co-chair of IPCC working group one, who produced the report.
[...]
"For example, there are not sufficient observations of the uptake of heat, particularly into the deep ocean, that would be one of the possible mechanisms to explain this warming hiatus."
[...]
The scientists say ocean warming dominates the increase in energy stored in the climate system, accounting for 90% of energy accumulated between 1971 and 2010.
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Warming the Oceans
doesn't matter does it?
That only powers the Jet Stream, and Storm Fronts, and Hurricanes, and Deep Ocean Circulation Patterns that drive the world's seasons.
"No problem" ... the deniers will surely claim. "It's just giving Nature a boost."
Here's some "Ocean Warming" observations and conclusions from an early copy of the IPCC's 5th warning missive to Humanity.
Working Group I Contribution to the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (pdf)
Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis
Summary for Policymakers
[...]
B.2 Ocean
Ocean warming dominates the increase in energy stored in the climate system, accounting for more than 90% of the energy accumulated between 1971 and 2010 (high confidence). It is virtually certain that the upper ocean (0−700 m) warmed from 1971 to 2010 (see Figure SPM.3), and it likely warmed between the 1870s and 1971. {3.2, Box 3.1}
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E.4 Ocean
The global ocean will continue to warm during the 21st century. Heat will penetrate from the surface to the deep ocean and affect ocean circulation. {11.3, 12.4}
• The strongest ocean warming is projected for the surface in tropical and Northern Hemisphere subtropical regions. At greater depth the warming will be most pronounced in the Southern Ocean (high confidence). Best estimates of ocean warming in the top one hundred meters are about 0.6°C (RCP2.6) to 2.0°C (RCP8.5), and about 0.3°C (RCP2.6) to 0.6°C (RCP8.5) at a depth of about 1000 m by the end of the 21st century. {12.4, 14.3}
• It is very likely that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) will weaken over the 21st century. Best estimates and range18 for the reduction from CMIP5 are 11% (1 to 24%) in RCP2.6 and 34% (12 to 54%) in RCP8.5. It is likely that there will be some decline in the AMOC by about 2050, but there may be some decades when the AMOC increases due to large internal variability. {11.3, 12.4}
• It is very unlikely that the AMOC will undergo an abrupt transition or collapse in the 21st century for the scenarios considered. There is low confidence in assessing the evolution of the AMOC beyond the 21st century because of the limited number of analyses and equivocal results. However, a collapse beyond the 21st century for large sustained warming cannot be excluded. {12.5}
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E.2 Atmosphere: Water Cycle
• The high latitudes and the equatorial Pacific Ocean are likely to experience an increase in annual mean precipitation by the end of this century under the RCP8.5 scenario. In many midlatitude and subtropical dry regions, mean precipitation will likely decrease, while in many midlatitude wet regions, mean precipitation will likely increase by the end of this century under the RCP8.5 scenario (see Figure SPM.8). {7.6, 12.4, 14.3}
larger
larger
[...]
• There is high confidence that the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) will remain the dominant mode of interannual variability in the tropical Pacific, with global effects in the 21st century. Due to the increase in moisture availability, ENSO-related precipitation variability on regional scales will likely intensify. Natural variations of the amplitude and spatial pattern of ENSO are large and thus confidence in any specific projected change in ENSO and related regional phenomena for the 21st century remains low. {5.4, 14.4}
Will Humanity dismiss this warning missive from the vast majority of Scientists, as per usual?
Warming the Oceans doesn't really matter, does it?
The 'Climate System' is just an Air Temperature on the Evening News weather forecast, right?
"The Oceans have nothing to do with it" ... the deniers will surely claim.
And of course, they will surely be wrong.