The Arctic research vessel Kronprins Haakon, piloted by PhD student Alexandra Stephens, studies the heat transfer between ocean and atmosphere, focusing on the weakening Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). Despite seeming frozen, Arctic waters reveal thermal variations critical to understanding climate systems that affect global weather patterns. Scientists warn that greenhouse gas emissions are threatening the AMOC's stability, potentially leading to a tipping point that could drastically alter temperatures in north-western Europe and the southern hemisphere, emphasizing the urgency of addressing climate change effects.
The transfer of heat from ocean to atmosphere is at the heart of one of the most important components of Earth's climate - a system of currents that snakes across the entire length of the Atlantic Ocean.
Some computer climate simulations warn that the AMOC could reach a tipping point in the twenty-first century and lose much of its strength, impacting billions of people.
#climate-change #atlantic-meridional-overturning-circulation #global-warming #arctic-research #ocean-currents
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