FIGURE 1.

Climate projections for the RCP 8.5 scenario for the global seafloor and two regions targeted for deep‐seabed mining, the Clarion Clipperton Zone (CCZ; left panels) and the northern Mid‐Atlantic Ridge (MAR right panels). (a) Time of Emergence: the year when future variability exceeds historical variability for all climate changes in temperature, oxygen, pH, and food supply (i.e., annual standard deviation between 1951 and 2000). (b) Cumulative negative climate hazard refers to the changes in warming, oxygen loss, acidification, and declining food supply (POC flux) relative to the historical variability by 2041–2060. (c) Cumulative negative climate hazard by 2081–2100. The gray polygons in the global map show the extent of the CCZ and MAR, respectively. Projections for the CCZ (left bottom panel in a–c) suggest strong regional variations among exploration contracts (brown), reserve areas (green), and areas of particular environmental interest (APEIs—gray), which are designated no‐mining zones in the CCZ. The right sub‐panels show the exploration contracts (brown) and ridge (gray) within a 150‐mile MAR buffer zone