One problem is that researchers haven't been studying ocean oxygen levels that long, so there isn't an extensive history of data collection to draw on. (scientificamerican.com)
The maps could also be useful resources for deciding where to place instruments to monitor ocean oxygen levels in the future to get the best picture of climate change impacts. (sciencedaily.com)
And no one knows how the biological pump will respond to human influences such as climate change and the accompanying acidification of ocean waters, or to decreases in ocean oxygen levels driven by the excess of nutrients that wastewater treatment, agriculture, and other human activities are putting into the ocean. (whoi.edu)