A crucial system of Atlantic Ocean currents could collapse by the 2030s and alter Earth’s weather. (Image: Getty)
A system of currents in the that play a vital role in regulating the Earth’s climate cycle could collapse in the 2030s, scientists have revealed in a new study.
The , or AMOC, is a system of currents that moves water, heat, and nutrients around the ocean and the globe. It pulls warm surface water from the southern hemisphere and distributes it to the northern part of the ocean.
Essentially, it prevents parts of the Southern Hemisphere from overheating and the Northern Hemisphere from reaching freezing temperatures.
However, recent , including “Probability Estimates of a 21st Century AMOC Collapse,” show that the AMOC could collapse due to .
It estimates the time frame for the collapse will likely be between 2037 and 2064. The research suggests it is more likely than not to collapse by 2050.
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Arctic ice would move south and after a century would cover the southern coast of England. (Image: Getty)
This, the scientists explain, would have a dramatic impact on the planet’s temperatures, including the collapse of and North America’s average temperature.
They reveal that after a hypothetical collapse of the Atlantic Ocean currents, ice from the Arctic would move south and, after a century, cover the southern coast of England.
The would also face irreversible changes, with its seasons flipping.
To carry out their study, researchers from Utrecht University in the Netherlands employed groundbreaking techniques to observe a region in the South Atlantic Ocean. They will track changes in circulation and utilise observational data to assess ocean temperatures and salt levels in the Atlantic.
It should be noted that the new study has yet to be peer-reviewed, meaning others have not had a chance to evaluate the study’s methodology and conclusions.
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Nevertheless, this is not the first study to come to this judgement.
Stefan Rahmstorf, a physical oceanographer at Potsdam University in Germany, spoke to and explained that “there are now five papers that [have] suggested [the currents could collapse] in this century, or even before the middle of the century.”
An AMOC collapse “is a really big danger that we should do everything we can to avoid,” Rahmstorf added, revealing that he believes there is a 50% chance of the Atlantic Ocean currents collapsing during this century.
However, with current technology, scientists cannot incorporate crucial factors like melting ice into their models, resulting in massive amounts of freshwater streaming into the North Atlantic and disrupting salt circulation.
“This is really worrying,” René van Westen, a marine and atmospheric researcher at the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands and study co-author, also told CNN.
“All the negative side effects of anthropogenic , they will still continue to go on, like more heat waves, more droughts, more ,” he told CNN. “Then if you also have on top of that an AMOC collapse … the climate will become even more distorted.”