Scientists warn that the system that drives oceanic currents may be at risk of collapsing due to climate change. The Washington Post reports that it could lead to a tsunami of freezing temperatures in Europe, North America and Asia.The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation system (AMOC), which transports warm, denser saltwater from tropics to northern Europe, is an integral part of how the oceans work. It cools it down, then makes its long return journey along the ocean floor.According to a study by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Germany, published in Nature Climate Change today (June 2012), this system is becoming more vulnerable to disruptions.This research shows that climate change's drastic effects could soon have new, very serious consequences.AdvertisementAdvertisementNiklas Boers, Potsdam Institute researcher, looked at temperature and sea level data for centuries and discovered significant early warning signals that the AMOC could have evolved from relatively stable conditions to an area close to a critical transition. He wrote this in his paper.Scientists believe that if AMOC switched off the system, then much of Europe and North America could experience prolonged periods of extreme cold. This could lead to a severe weather event, with sea levels rising along the US East Coast.It is a frightening prospect. We are not seeing a steady decline. Instead, we are approaching a threshold beyond which our circulation system could collapse. Boers stated this in a press release.Boers stated that the melting of freshwater sources has already contributed to this effect. It is now more difficult for less-cooled water to sink to bottom of oceans because it is buoyant. This trend was not something he expected, he said in the statement.AdvertisementAdvertisementThe last time that the AMOC was closed was around 12,000 years ago at the tail end the last ice age. This was caused by the melting of an enormous glacial lake. The European extreme cold spell lasted almost a millennium.As we know, the AMOC has been weakened by human activity, greenhouse gases, and rising sea temperatures. The critical threshold is likely to be much closer than we expected, Boers explained to the Post.Already, the Gulf Stream is slowing down due to AMOC. This causes sea levels to drop along the US East Coast and fish population to decline.We don't know when enough greenhouse gases could build up to cause the AMOC shut down. A 2016 study suggested that the AMOC could be insolvent by 2300, if there are no meaningful efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.AdvertisementAdvertisementAccording to Boers, it would be impossible to reverse the trend.He said that it was one of those unfortunate events and that we should do everything we can to reduce greenhouse gases emissions as soon as possible. This is not a system that we want to alter.READ MORE: Climate change could lead to the collapse of a critical ocean system, study shows [The Washington Post]Climate change: Scientists are horrified by the growing dead zone in the oceanAdvertisementAdvertisement
