The dead zones are blowin' in the wind

The dead zones are pretty terrifying harbingers of what all the oceans will look like, and researchers are linking the growth of the dead zones to climate change caused shifts in wind currents.

"The delicate interplay between the oceans and atmosphere is changing with catastrophic consequences."

The changes in wind patterns have affected the timing of a natural shift in the seas between cold, nutrient rich water and warm, worn-out waters. Where this shift, called upwelling, occurs, plankton blooms, and fish come to eat. When upwelling is disrupted in any way, the consequences are catastrophic for the ecosystem.

Off the coast of Oregon, a massive die off "was so severe that the researchers fear that marine life cannot return to the area."

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