A study by The Shirshov Institute of Oceanology finally discovered this aquatic mass, known as the Atlantic Equatorial Water (AEW), by poring over data available through the international Argo program. Understanding this water mass—as well as others—will help scientists grasp how the world’s oceans transfer heat and nutrients across the planet. One of these sections of ocean is what’s known as equatorial water, which forms along the equator and separates bodies to its north and south. This has been a particularly sticky problem for oceanologists, because it suggests that the Earth’s other equatorial oceans somehow behave differently than the Atlantic. The paper notes that these water masses can act as reservoirs of heat, salt, and dissolved gasses—all of which reflect climate variability.