Kakani Kajita conducted research on animal swimming and jellyfish propulsion, when all of a sudden, he might have affected the way we think about the ocean, and the creatures, and the weather.

Image Source: https://www.cnrs.fr/en/press/climate-change-has-reduced-ocean-mixing-far-more-expected

Kajita researched ocean mixing, the process of warm, sun-filled water above with cold nutritional water near the bottom. Winds, Ocean currents, and tides are the primary reasons for ocean mixing, however, ocean mixing is also one of the greatest effects on animal movement. However, this is also the most needed aspect for some organisms to survive. They sort of have a slider to see how they are needing the most, for Nutritional water, they can settle deep, for sun filled water with oxygen, they float up and settle.

It’s not the water only affecting fish, we are also the ones to get affected. The Earth uses the ocean to circulate heat, without the oceans circulating water, we could’ve had Africa at 100 degrees celsius, and Russia at negative 50 degrees celsius. 

To smaller creatures on the other hand, water feels relatively more viscous. Basically, it’s because of this stickiness in the fluid that if you are small you have the ability to transport or move fluid around you. That allows for smaller animals to transport and mix more fluid relative to their size than larger animals. 

When these small creatures move in large quantities, it can lead to the ocean mixing. However, this fact isn’t certain and only a theory.

In order to know how they mix water, we need to know two factors. How much energy does it need to mix seawater? How much energy is used to impart to the water to mix it? These questions, when answered, will provide a plan B when the animals who mix the waters go extinct, by making a floating mixer like you see in your ordinary kitchens, which circulates up and down, and provides a living space for all those remaining creatures in the future.

[Written by 4th Grader]

https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/hows-weather-there