Researchers working in the Western Tropical Pacific Ocean have found that the thermocline rises with global warming. After, first, trying to measure the currents under the sea by studying the movement of coral, they came to the conclusion that, since the thermocline is changing, it is impossible to measure the currents over time in a broad area. They, instead, used soft coral as a substitute to measure the change in the thermocline over time. The researchers took data from three different depths of the ocean they measured the chemical structure of the coral skeleton that had built up over time. When they cut slices through the coral “trunks” they found that there were rings, similar to that of a tree trunk. The researchers assembled a growth chart covering the last century, and focused on the ratio between two isotopes of nitrogen in the material to get an idea of the rise and fall in the thermocline over time. After this research, they found that it had no effect on the thermocline. Researches plan on testing different samples of coral from different locations.
In my opinion, this research is fascinating. I love to hear about new theories and the conclusions that scientists come to after collecting tons of research. Finding out new things and how they relate to science is exciting to me, and I think it should be to everyone. I think it would be fun to research under water and conducting tests on coral. The trial and error method to find the solution to something is one of my favorite things to do, and maybe someday that will aid me in my line of work (as it did for the researchers testing to find the best way to measure the thermocline).
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