Global warming is a hot topic right now, but researchers believe the phenomenon is on "hiatus."
Surface temperatures around the globe have remained constant since 1998, suggesting global warming may not be as immediate of a danger as was predicted, The Telegraph reported.
Some researchers disagree, three new reports from the Met Office claim the effects of global warming have been disguised by the oceans which have been absorbing excess heat.
If this is the case, the repercussions of climate change will be delayed for five to 10 years, but are still a cause of concern.
Professor Piers Forster of Leeds University believes a "calm" sun and volcanic eruptions may be the cause of the cooling effect, the BBC reported.
Aerosols ("tiny particles caused by industrial pollution") may also be a contributing factor to the pause in warming, though their effects are largely unknown.
Most researchers tend to come back to oceans, temperature measurements of the deep water show signs of slight warming in recent years.
Scientists have always expected variations in climate change.
Professor Rowan Sutton, of Reading University said climate models predicted the process would be sporadic, and climate change could even take 20 year breaks.
"Within the field we have taken for granted that there will be variations in the rate of warming, it is totally accepted and is no surprise ...[it] would correct to say that wasn't the message that we communicated more widely and that probably is a failing," Sutton said, according to The Telegraph.
Professor Stephen Belcher, head of the Met Office Hadley Centre said further models predict about two periods of "hiatus" every century, the BBC reported.
Dr. Peter Stott, of the Met Office believes warming is still a legitimate and immediate concern. While breaking the trend, the past 14 years or so have still been some of the warmest on record. Arctic sea ice has been melting at a whopping 12.9 percent rate per decade.
The Met Office released a statement that said even though the temperatures over the past 10 years have shown a less extreme incline, the warming trend is only decreased by about 10 percent.
This means "the warming that we might have expected by 2050 would be delayed by only a few years."
