Why are oceans becoming warmer?

Question

Why are oceans becoming warmer?

Answer 1

Primarily because of the albedo effect. The earth has a specific albedo, the amount of light it reflects off it's surface. As the atmosphere warms, the polar ice caps (and glaciers, etc.) melt thereby lowering the albedo. A darker object absorbs more light (more heat) while a lighter one reflects more.

So, a large expanse of white ice reflects more light producing a cooling effect. When that ice is gone, the light falls on the darker ocean surface where more is absorbed producing a warming effect.

The irony is, the melting ice increases the warming, that increases the melting, that increases the warming... It's a circle that will be tough to break.

Answer 2

oceans become warmer because of all the small children who go to the beach and wee in the sea.

Answer 3

oceans are becoming warmer because of too much CO2 in the atmosphere that deflects back the incoming heat from the sun... the ocean absorbs this heat but then again isn't able to release it back to the atmos. because of pollution and those stuff...

Answer 4

because they are heated by the sun

and the increased amount of greenhouse gases causes more heat to be reflected back into the oceans