Hurricanes intensify long-term ocean warming by pushing heat deeper, study finds.

Hurricanes not only gain their energy from warm sea surface temperatures but also help warm the ocean by enhancing its ability to absorb and store heat. A new study shows that hurricanes push heat deep into the ocean, which can lock it up for years and ultimately affect regions far from the storm. Underwater waves produced by the storm can push the heat roughly four times deeper than mixing alone, sending it to a depth where the heat is trapped far from the surface. Once this heat is picked up by large-scale ocean currents, it can be transported to distant parts of the ocean and affect ecosystems.