Warming Oceans Could Trigger a Dangerous Methane Surge

Researchers found that phosphate scarcity in oxygen-rich surface waters can trigger microbes to produce methane.

As oceans warm, weaker nutrient mixing could expand these low-phosphate zones and raise methane emissions.

The study points to a climate feedback loop that may intensify global warming.

The findings, from the University of Rochester and published in PNAS, highlight a process missing from many climate models.