Geological records of deep ocean currents have revealed a connection between the orbits of Earth and Mars, which appears to have impacted past global warming events and even ocean circulation.
Analysis published in Nature Communications shows a 2.4 million year cycle of rising and falling deep currents.
These tides are associated with periods of increased energy from the Sun and a warmer global climate (completely unrelated to other climate change drivers such as human-produced greenhouse gas emissions).
As reported by Cosmos Magazine, data from hundreds of drilling locations around the world collected over more than 50 years reveals the rate of change in ocean currents every few million years.
“We were surprised to find this 2.4 million year cycle in our deep sea sediment data,” said lead author Dr Adriana Dutkiewicz from the University of Sydney.
“There is only one way to explain them: they are related to the interaction cycle of Mars and Earth orbiting the Sun.”
Also Read: Scientists Discover That Mars Once Had a Huge Amount of Water
So, Earth’s attraction to Mars causes a huge commotion in the deep ocean currents of our planet. It’s almost romantic.
“The gravitational fields of the planets in the solar system interfere with each other and these interactions, called resonances, change a planet’s eccentricity, a measure of how close its orbit is to a circle,” said co-author Dietmar Müller, a professor also from the University of Sydney.
This gravitational interaction means that Earth has higher levels of solar radiation and a warmer climate every 2.4 million years.
The warm cycle correlates with breaking deep ocean records due to stronger deep ocean circulation.
Ocean currents play a major role in the climate in many parts of the world.
For example, the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is part of the global ocean “conveyor belt” that carries water from north to south and vice versa.
It brings warm water to colder latitudes, keeping Europe’s climate warm, and transporting essential nutrients to sustain marine life.
2024-03-13 03:58:00
#Mars #Gravity #Drives #Ocean #Currents #Earth #Impressions #Impressions
