13,670 nautical miles. 50-foot waves. One big collision.
Over the weekend a Saildrone -- a 23-foot long uncrewed marine robot -- withstood the tempestuous seas around Antarctica to complete the first-ever circumnavigation of the continent by a drone. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) scientists collaborated with autonomous vehicle specialists, Saildrone, to test whether the seafaring robot could survive the rough waters, and make successful scientific observations.
NOAA needs to gauge how much carbon dioxide -- the potent greenhouse gas now amassing in the atmosphere -- the southern seas are absorbing from the air, and it hopes Saildrones can help. Overall, the oceans soak up a huge amount of the CO2 that humanity emits into the atmosphere (some 30 percent), which has substantially curbed Earth's accelerating temperature rise. Now, understanding how much carbon the oceans will likely soak up in the future is critical to grasping how Earth's increasingly disrupted climate will transform society and the natural world.
"The ocean is doing a huge service for the globe," said Adrienne Sutton, a NOAA oceanographer working on the Saildrone missions. She noted that the carbon-absorbing oceans have kept the planet nearly 1 degree Fahrenheit (0.5 Celsius) cooler than if these global waters did not soak up greenhouse gases.
The Saildrone's trip around Antarctica.Credit: saildroneBut as the seas warm and change, they might become less adept at absorbing the planet's mounting atmospheric carbon (for one, warmer oceans absorb less CO2). "That's a big problem," noted Sutton.
So oceanographers want to vastly expand their observations of the Southern Ocean, a notoriously harsh, remote, and little-observed region that scientists don't fully grasp. Some recent evidence suggests this ocean is hugely variable; in recent years it has absorbed significantly less carbon than during years prior. Will the Southern Ocean be a reliable carbon-absorber, known as a "carbon sink," in the years ahead? "That's an open question," said Sutton.
Understanding this vast, perplexing ocean requires more observations.
"We need to project its fate in the future," said Matthew Long, an oceanographer at the National Center for Atmospheric Research who had no role in the mission.
Enter the Saildrone. As the drone travels the high seas it takes direct measurements of carbon dioxide. A fleet of sailing drones would dramatically improve oceanographers' grasp of the Southern Ocean's behavior. "The Saildrone can be part of a more complete observing system down there," said Sutton.
"They are an incredible research platform," added Long.
The Saildrone filmed stormy Southern Ocean seas.Credit: saildroneAnd they're quite sturdy. Saildrone said that it collided with a giant iceberg tall enough to knock off a wind-monitoring instrument affixed 20 feet high on the drone. Though, because the collision occurred at night, it's impossible to know just how big the iceberg was. Icebergs in the area are often miles long.
"It wasn't a small bump," said Sutton.
Still, the drone persevered, though many of its weather-monitoring instruments were damaged in the collision.
SEE ALSO:People downloaded this landmark climate study 1 million timesLooking ahead, if modern civilization hopes to dramatically slash its carbon emissions to net-zero (meaning reducing overall emissions by 100 percent through a combination of cutting emissions and pulling carbon out of the air), governments and policymakers must know almost exactly how much carbon the oceans are soaking up.
"The function of the ocean as a carbon sink is an integral component of our ability to meet net-zero," noted Long.
Though the public increasingly recognizes the mounting threats posed by climate change, the journey to net-zero emissions will be long. Atmospheric CO2 levels are not going down. Rather, they're increasing at rates that are unprecedented in both the historic and geologic record.
(责任编辑：探索)
Samsung Galaxy Note7 teardown reveals the magic behind the phone's iris scanner
'Quordle' today: See each 'Quordle' answer and hints for February 27
The Frenz brainband talks you to sleep with artificial intelligence
'Peter Pan & Wendy' is officially upon us. Here's everything you need to know.Watch MTV's Video Music Awards 2016 livestreamNate Parker is finally thinking about the woman who accused him of rape
Nate Parker is getting a crash course in male privilege after, in his own words, not thinking about
...[详细]Free online resources for kids that celebrate Black history and culture
Whether your child can recite from memory the names and philosophies of leaders like W.E.B. Du Bois
...[详细]Meryl Streep joins the cast of 'Only Murders in the Building'
With members of its cast ranging from Sting to Shirley MacLaine, Only Murders in the Buildingis no s
...[详细]
Everybody makes mistakes at work but, leaving the no-fly list exposed on the internet seems like a r
...[详细]Aly Raisman catches Simone Biles napping on a plane like a champion
Simone Biles is exhausted. She won five medals at the Summer Olympics in Rio, posed for selfies with
...[详细]Microsoft is laying off 10,000 employees
Microsoft will let go of 10,000 employees over the coming months, becoming the latest tech giant to
...[详细]
If you used to use Twitterific, Tweetbot, or other third-party Twitter clients recently found not wo
...[详细]End Rape On Campus online tool spotlights college sexual assault stats
When deciding on the perfect college, prospective students have a lot to consider. They're probably
...[详细]Photos show the Blue Cut fire blazing a path of destruction in California
A fast moving wildfire continued raging near San Bernadino, California, forcing the evacuation of at
...[详细]'The Last of Us' episode 4 tied the show to the game with a Hank Williams song
The Last of Usis wielding popular music to perplex us, to tie episodes together, and to make us cry.
...[详细]Chinese gymnastics team horrifies crowd with human jump rope
7 burning questions we have for 'You' Season 4 Part 2
