Half the population of the earth would be affected.
A shutdown would have devastating global impacts and must not be allowed to happen, researchers say
www.theguardian.com
Climate crisis: Scientists spot warning signs of Gulf Stream collapse
A shutdown would have devastating global impacts and must not be allowed to happen, researchers say
Scientists fear a critical Atlantic Ocean system might collapse, triggering 'extreme cold' and sea level rise
Scientists are worried the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC), a "critical aquatic conveyer belt" that drives currents in the Atlantic Ocean, is at risk of near-complete collapse due to climate change, The Washington Post reports.
A shutdown of the crucial circulation system could "bring extreme cold to Europe and parts of North America, raise sea levels along the U.S. East Coast, and disrupt seasonal monsoons that provide water to much of the world," the Post reports. The effects, in short, would be devastating.
Scientists previously believed the AMOC would in fact weaken this century, but didn't imagine total collapse within the next 300 years except in absolute worst-case warming scenarios. Now, according to a new study, that critical threshold "is most likely much closer than we would have expected," said Niklas Boers, the study's author and a researcher at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. Any exact date, however, is still unknown.