A key question for climate scientists in recent years has been whether the Atlantic Ocean’s main circulation system is slowing down, a development that could have dramatic consequences for Europe and other parts of the Atlantic rim. But a new study suggests help may be on the way from an unexpected source — the Indian Ocean.
Think of it as ocean-to-ocean altruism in the age of climate change.
The new study, from Shineng Hu of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California-San Diego and Alexey Fedorov of Yale University, appears Sept. 16 in the journal Nature Climate Change. It is the latest in a growing body of research that explores how global warming may alter global climate components such as the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC).
AMOC is one of the planet’s largest water circulation systems. It operates like a liquid escalator, delivering warm water to the North Atlantic via an upper limb and sending colder water south via a deeper limb.
Read more at: Yale University
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