About the lecture

In this module, we think about the role of the oceans in regulating global temperature and the impacts of climate change on ocean processes. We focus on: (i) the transport of heat by the oceans from the equator to polar regions; (ii) the oceans’ greater thermal inertia than the atmosphere (they change temperature more slowly) and the importance of this for weather patterns; (iii) the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and its role in global temperature and weather systems; (iv) the increase in overall ocean temperature caused by climate change, and the impacts of this on, for example, sea levels.

About the lecturer

Dr Katy Sheen is Senior Lecturer in Physical Geography and the University of Exeter. Her research focuses on the physics of the oceans, the role of the oceans and ocean-atmosphere interactions in the global climate system, and the impacts of climate change. Much of her work is focused on the Southern Ocean around Antarctica.