Volcanoes Spew Lava
We will begin with the eruption of undersea volcanoes, which make the global climate over thousands of years. Volcanoes spew lava, carbon dioxide, and other elements into the deep ocean. Due to volcanoes spewing carbon dioxide into the ocean, the carbon dioxide gets trapped into circulating water, which is cycled to different regions of the ocean, where it gets caught up in upwelling currents and emitted to the atmosphere (Vaidyanathan, Gayathr). The process can take up to 2000 years and most likely will add a fraction of the 88 million metric tons of carbon that is belched out by the volcanoes to the atmosphere. Volcanoes tend to erupt when ocean tides are at their lowest point due to the gravitational pull of the moon and sun. The future climate could also change due to high tides, suppress underwater volcanic activity, and thousands of years hence (Vaidyanathan, Gayathr).
Carbon Leak From the Southern Ocean
Secondly, carbon leak from the Southern Ocean is another cause of climate change by nature. A carbon leak in the Southern Ocean has gradually warmed the planet for 11,000 years. It is believed that an increase in ocean circulation in the area has triggered the leak of gas which can also be a cause of climate change (Dailymail.com, Mark Prigg For). This is caused by the increasing amounts of water, rich in nutrients and carbon dioxide, welled up from the deep ocean to the surface of the Southern Ocean during the Holocene. Due to the process of locking away greenhouse gas is weakened by activity of the Southern Ocean, the increase in its activity could be the mysterious warmth of the past 11,000 years. The increase of circulation in the Southern Ocean allowed carbon dioxide to leak into the atmosphere, working to warm the planet (Dailymail.com, Mark Prigg For). The new discoveries about ocean changes could also have implications for predicting how global warming will affect ocean circulation and how much atmospheric carbon dioxide will rise due to fossil fuel burning.
Lastly, Earth’s orbital variations and sea ice synch glacial periods also known as Milankovitch climate have been the cause of climate change due to nature. This affects our climate due to the fact that each of the Milankovitch Cycles has an influence on the amount of sunlight the planet receives. Every 100,000, 41,000, and 21,000 years the cycles change (Earth’s Orbital Variations, Sea Ice Synch Glacial Periods). With the 100,000-year cycle alone being the weakest of the three it has been a problem to the degree which it affects solar radiation. New studies have shown that the mechanism in which the 100,000 year cycle and the 21,000-year cycle work together to drive Earth’s glacial cycle. The 21,000-year cycle has to do with precession which is the change in orientation of Earth’s tilted rotational axis, which is what creates Earth’s changing seasons (Earth’s Orbital Variations, Sea Ice Synch Glacial Periods). With the northern Hemisphere being tilted toward the sun, it gets more sunlight and summer experience. On the other hand, the Southern Hemisphere is tilted away, which causes it to get less sunlight and more winter experience(Earth’s Orbital Variations, Sea Ice Synch Glacial Periods). This also goes the other way around after a six-month period, so due to this whichever Hemisphere is closer to the sun causes it to summer, which would make the opposite hemisphere further away from the sun causing it to be winter.
Climate Change in Our Environment
In conclusion, nature has a lot to do with climate change in our environment. Three examples of this have been Undersea volcanic eruptions, carbon leaks in the Southern Ocean, and lastly but not least Earth’s orbital variations and sea ice synch glacial periods aka Milankovitch climate. This affects our climate due to the fact that each of the Milankovitch Cycles has an influence on the amount of sunlight the planet receives. The future climate could also change due to high tides, suppress underwater volcanic activity, and thousands of years hence. It is believed that an increase in ocean circulation in the area has triggered the leak of gas which can also be a cause of climate change. New discoveries about ocean changes could also have implications for predicting how global warming will affect ocean circulation and how much atmospheric carbon dioxide will rise due to fossil fuel burning. All these have been researched causes of our climate change and while there are more out there, these are the three I decided to focus on.
