Global warming has created an increasing number of seismic events across the planet triggering alarming warnings from geologists and climate scientists around the world. However, the fact that the surface temperature of the earth has not increased has made some people skeptical about global warming. This has confused the experts as well.

A joint study between the US National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the Bureau of Meteorology in Australia was based on computer models to simulate points to locate the missing heat. The results of the study indicate that oceans deeper than 1,000 feet (or 300 meters) have been absorbing the excess heat. These oceans may well hold the heat for as long as a decade before releasing it back into the atmosphere. Shallower oceans of less than 1000 feet, however, have warmed by 60% less than the deeper oceans during the non-hiatus periods.

In a report released in the September 2011 issue of the Journal of Climatic Change, Gerald Meehl of NCAR and lead author, says global warming will go through hiatus periods lasting approximately 10 years. However, the oceans will not hold the heat much longer than that and will release it into the atmosphere.

The 2000′s have been the warmest decade in the history of the planet; however, satellite measurements have noted a discrepancy between the amount of sunshine going into the atmosphere and the amount of radiation the earth is releasing. The implication is that the radiation has to be building somewhere on the planet.

In 2010, Kevin Trenberth and John Fasullo of NCAR published their findings in the journal Science. Even though the heat is buried deep in the ocean, it still exists and cannot be ignored. We will still have to deal with it at some point in the future.